New takeover report reveals bizarre reason £300m Saudi bid is yet to be passed by Premier League

Let’s face it, surely no-one is going to spend £300m on a new company and not know who’s going to be in charge of that company. Even more so would they commit to a deal with a “Boss” in mind that might scupper the deal. I hardly think so and yet this is said to be the latest issue that threatens to block a potential buyout.

Newcastle United’s proposed takeover by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium has been delayed because of a lack of clarity over who would be in charge at the club, BBC Sport has learned. Sixteen weeks after documents relating to a £300m takeover were registered with the Premier League, the deal is still being scrutinised under its owners’ and directors’ test.

But it is understood compliance requires greater certainty as to who would have ultimate responsibility at St James’ Park.

The bid has been led by British financier Amanda Staveley, but Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth Public Investment Fund (PIF) is set to take a 80% stake.

PIF’s chairman is Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and it appears the Premier League’s lawyers are struggling to establish the precise links between the consortium and the Saudi government. This is crucial given the television rights piracy issues that have dogged the saga, with Saudi Arabia denying claims it facilitated the illegal streaming of sports events in the Middle East.

Meanwhile The Chronicle are reporting that The Premier League are understood to have asked whether Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would be fronting the Public Investment Fund’s part in the consortium, however, for some time the group have insisted that Yasir Al-Rumayyan would be deemed as the incoming chairman of the Magpies.

Al-Rumayyan, a former investment banker, was hired by Saudi’s Crown Prince, Mohammed bin Salman, to manage the country’s Public Investment Fund in 2015.

What makes it even worse is that no-one is talking to anyone but several “people in the know” seem to be able to get some information from the major players who definitely are the strong silent type. The Premier League, PIF and Magpies owner Mike Ashley having all declined to comment.

The situation is worrying as we don’t know what’s true and what’s not. But with only seven weeks until the new season starts and the transfer window open, patience is staring to wear thin on all sides. Not least from our wonderfully loyal fans that surely deserve better treatment than they’ve been getting.

14 thoughts on “New takeover report reveals bizarre reason £300m Saudi bid is yet to be passed by Premier League

  1. If this is true than masters and crownies are really taking the **** out of us by being unable to make a decision!!?

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  2. If this is a true report,it is as believable as the other excuses us gullible,stupid members of the public are expected to swallow…….Iwas at a pizza place that day,Iwas testing my eyesight at Barnard Castle,the dog ate my homework and the Premier League Board know what’s they’re doing!…….oh and every other owner and director in the Premier League are honest,honourable and innocent people.???

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  3. A 350 page document was given to the Premier League approx 4 months ago, and only now they’re asking who’s going to be in charge??

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  4. There is either something really rotten in the woodwork here, or an enormous ineptitude by the fl. it’s we fans who are left in the dark, and have been for over four months now. It just gets more and more wiered

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  5. Is this not sorted by a phone call. “So, who’s going to be in charge?”
    “He is.”
    “Great, thanks.”

    Is this why I’m not a billionaire?

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  6. Come on Richard Masters – stop sitting on the fence and make a decision. If you don’t do it soon watch out as Mike Ashley may well be suing you for leaving the club in limbo at transfer time…
    Any delay affecting NUFCs ability to purchase players during the transfer period will be directly attributable to you, leaving you and the FA wide open to legal proceedings. There is no way this decision should be taking this long. 4 months is a joke and you are making the FA look stupid.

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  7. Surely they can’t even start the owners and directors test without knowing who the owners and directors are. Obviously a load of rubbish. If there only asking that now then they can’t have started any of the test

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  8. If they are struggling to make a link between Investment fund and government maybe there isn’t one

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  9. What I would like to ask Richard Masters is how have the BBC Sport have this supposedly latest information as to why a decision on the takeover has been delayed because clarity is required as to who are the prospective owners of NUFC. If it is true, who is leaking this information to the media from the Premier Leagues inner sanctum where a non disclosure rule is supposed to be in effect ? Publicly Masters tells everyone he cannot make any comments . Hypocrite is the word that comes to mind. It is now time Masters and his well paid Premiership buddies did their job and made a decision and put everyone in the Newcastle area out of their misery.

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  10. We need to march on the Premier League as many Newcastle fans to London and give them hell because they just don’t what us to be successful 😥

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  11. I love articles like this, trying to assign the most basic levels of common sense to the most complex contractual issues.

    “Let’s face it, surely no-one is going to spend £300m on a new company and not know who’s going to be in charge of that company.”
    They know exactly who will be in charge – they just don’t want to tell the EPL

    “Even more so would they commit to a deal with a “Boss” in mind that might scupper the deal. I hardly think so…”

    Of course they would never do that.
    In the same way they would never dream of putting forward a major partner directly linked to a government that promoted piracy, human rights issues and state sponsored murder?

    The Reubens and PCP were tagged into the match to try to make the deal more acceptable to the EPL, but it appears no-one has fallen for it. From the very beginning fans have claimed that the EPL don’t have the balls to stop the deal. The real question is, do they have the balls to approve it!

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  12. Looks like some dirty play is coming into this! Someone should be taken to task and if this goes on be suspended or taken to court! Get this sorted.

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