Newcastle takeover optimism cautiously grows with barriers to deal beginning to shift

A year on from initial talks the uneasy renewal of relationships in the Middle East may be a cause for positivity on Tyneside

Tony Evans
Friday 29 January 2021 10:43 GMT
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Newcastle's Saudi Arabia takeover collapses

The Newcastle United takeover saga has rumbled on for a year but there are indications that the buyout of the club by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) may be slowly creeping towards its endgame. The political mood in the Gulf has changed over the past month and some of the barriers to the deal may be beginning to shift.

Sources close to the Amanda Staveley-led bid remain cautiously optimistic. PIF proposed funding 80 per cent of the £300million takeover, with Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners and the Reuben brothers each financing 10 per cent of the transaction.

The departure of Rafa Benitez from Dalian Professional last week raised hopes among some fans that this was an indication that the logjam was close to breaking and the 60-year-old would come back to St James’ Park. Benitez has a good relationship with Staveley and would be keen to return to the north east under a new regime. The Spaniard is not heading to Tyneside, though. He is likely to be reappointed at a former club but Napoli is his probable destination.

The real indications that the takeover could move forward came from the Middle East. Last month Saudi Arabia and its allies restored diplomatic ties with Qatar. The neighbouring Gulf nations had been in a state of cold war for three years. The Premier League’s main objection to PIF taking a stake in Newcastle was the desert kingdom’s treatment of BeIn Sports, the Qatar-owned rights holder in the region. The broadcaster was banned from Saudi Arabia and the company’s transmissions were pirated. Riyadh – at the very least – turned a blind eye to the hijacking of BeIn’s Premier League coverage and the Qataris alleged that the Saudi authorities were behind the theft, an assertion backed by the World Trade Organisation.

The situation placed the Premier League in a difficult situation. The ruling body delayed rubber-stamping the deal until the consortium ran out of patience and withdrew their offer. Mike Ashley has begun arbitration proceedings with the Premier League and is considering escalating the legal action. The owner, who is reviled by the fans, is desperate to offload the club and has engaged two prominent QCs, Nick De Marco and Shaheed Fatima, to help pursue the case.

Newcastle remain unsold a year after initial takeover talks began

Courtroom battles may be unnecessary. Although BeIn is still officially blocked in Saudi Arabia, a number of cafes and restaurants have started showing the channel this month, using satellite dishes to pick up the Qatari broadcasts. BeIn filed a lawsuit against the Saudis seeking $1billion in damages but has indicated that it will withdraw the action if allowed to operate in the kingdom.  

The growing détente between the countries is likely to remove many of the Premier League’s objections to the takeover. Suspicions remain between the Saudis and Qataris but the uneasy renewal of relationships on the Arabian peninsular may be a cause for positivity on Tyneside.

This week PIF outlined its strategy for the next five years, committing to $40billion of investment each year as the kingdom attempts to diversify its income away from oil revenues. “Our goal is to make our country a pioneer for the new human civilisation,” Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, the Saudi ruler and PIF chairman said on Sunday.

That statement will grate in the ears of those who oppose the Newcastle sale on the grounds of Saudi Arabia’s human rights abuses. Amnesty International last year called for a revamp of the Premier League’s Owners’ and Directors’ test to exclude countries with dubious records on civil rights from buying into English football for ‘sportswashing’ purposes.

To counterbalance this, there was political pressure on Richard Masters, the Premier League chief executive, from north-east MPs who were keen to push the takeover through, believing that Saudi investment in the club and the wider community would give Tyneside an economic injection, a potential boost made more urgent by the impact of the pandemic.

No one connected with the deal believes anything will happen imminently. Both the club and the fans are preoccupied with the team’s poor form. Steve Bruce’s side have a six-point cushion between them and the relegation zone but results and form suggest that a battle against the drop is becoming a real danger.

There is little positive happening for Newcastle on the pitch but the long-delayed takeover may be inching towards a conclusion - for better or for worse.

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