Premier League has been urged to reconsider Newcastle’s Saudi takeover after a court document raises new concerns.
Following the filing of a new court document in the United States, the Premier League has been urged to reconsider assurances given by Newcastle’s Saudi owners that the Middle Eastern state would not have control of the club.
The document, which was filed earlier this week, has raised new concerns about the level of separation between the Saudi government and the Public Investment Fund (PIF), whose governor, Yasir Al Rumayyan, is also the chairman of Newcastle.
The PIF is described as “a sovereign instrumentality of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia” and Al Rumayyan as “a sitting minister of the Saudi government” in a brief filed in a court case involving the PGA Tour and LIV Golf.
After receiving “legally binding assurances” that the Saudi state would not have control of the club, the Premier League approved the PIF-led takeover of Newcastle in October 2021. Amnesty International is now urging the Premier League to question Newcastle’s owners further.
“It was always stretching credulity to the breaking point to believe that the Saudi state wasn’t directing the buyout of Newcastle with the ultimate goal of using the club as a component in its larger sportswashing efforts,” Amnesty UK’s economic affairs director Peter Frankental said.
“There’s an unmistakable irony in the sovereign wealth fund declaration emerging in a dispute about another arm of Saudi Arabia’s growing sports empire, but the simple fact is that Saudi sportswashing is affecting numerous sports and governing bodies need to respond to it far more effectively.
“The Premier League will undoubtedly need to re-examine the assurances given about the Saudi authorities’ non-involvement in the Newcastle deal, not least because a Qatari bid for Manchester United is still on the table.”
The PIF is chaired by the Saudi Prime Minister, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman, with eight of the nine PIF board members listed on the fund’s website as being either a minister or a royal advisor. Al Rumayyan is the only exception, but now the court document describes him as a minister too.
Frankental added: “In the 18 months since the Newcastle purchase, the human rights situation in Saudi Arabia has deteriorated markedly, with scores of executions after unfair trials, courts jailing peaceful critics, and the authorities continuing to block accountability for Jamal Khashoggi’s murder.”
The Premier League has declined to comment.
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