Newcastle Takeover: A consortium backed by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), a sovereign wealth fund of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has taken ownership of English Premier League club – Newcastle United. The chairman of PIF is Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
PIF together with PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media (“Investment Group”) completed the acquisition of the Newcastle United club on 7 October 2021. The club made an announcement in a statement on its official website.
“The Governor of PIF, His Excellency Yasser Al-Rumayyan, will serve as non-executive chairman of Newcastle United. Amanda Staveley, chief executive of PCP Capital Partners, will have a seat on the board,” the statement said. Yasser al-Rumayyan is not only the governor of PIF but also the president of the world’s largest oil company, Aramco.
An investment group led by the Public Investment Fund, which also includes PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media, has completed the 100% acquisition of Newcastle United Limited and Newcastle United Football Club Limited from St James’s Holdings Limited.
️⚪️
— Newcastle United FC (@NUFC) October 7, 2021
Yasser said, “We are extremely proud to be the new owners of Newcastle United, one of the most celebrated clubs in English football. We thank the fans of Newcastle for their tremendously loyal support over the years and we look forward to working closely with them. Excited to work.” Al-Rumayyan.
Amanda Staveley, CEO of PCP Capital Partners, said: “This is a long-term investment. We are excited about the future prospects for Newcastle United.”
Club fans got excited after the announcement
A fan dressed as Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman #nufc pic.twitter.com/9Bv6yOinbB
— Bill Edgar (@BillEdgarnews) October 7, 2021
Broadcast trouble?
Qatar-based media house BeIN, which has the rights to broadcast Premier League matches in the Middle East, was banned in Saudi Arabia four years ago. His presence was a major obstacle in the completion of the PFI takeover of Newcastle United.
Now that Saudi Arabia owns a team in the EPL, they want the Premier League to be broadcast in the KSA. “BIN has been informed by Saudi Arabia (KSA) that steps have been taken to lift the ban after four and a half years,” a source in beIN Sports told CNN.
.