Saudi Prince Buys Newcastle United

Finally, one of the most popular clubs in the English Premier League, Newcastle United, found the buyer. Even though there are e few companies involved in the deal, the new owner of the Magpies will be the Saudi Prince, Mohammad bin Salman.

The media from the United Kingdom is claiming that the agreement between the current owner, Mike Ashley, and the official buyers PCP Capital Partners is already struck. At the moment, the formality of the paperwork is the only thing that separates the Magpies from getting new landlords.

“An investor group led by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has agreed a £300m deal to buy Newcastle United FC from UK retail tycoon Mike Ashley, three ppl w/ direct knowledge of the matter told the Financial Times,” Arash Massoudi, one of the most prominent FT faces, wrote on his Twitter account.

An investor group led by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund has agreed a £300m deal to buy Newcastle United FC from UK retail tycoon Mike Ashley, three ppl w/ direct knowledge of matter told the @FT.

Story w/ @carolinebinham @SamuelAgini @BondHack  

https://t.co/uMEIxJhMhb

— Arash Massoudi (@ArashMassoudi) April 14, 2020

A part of the documents has already been taken care of, and it is expected to hear the official confirmation about the venture in days to come.

Now, although those documents aren’t officially mentioning the Saudi Public Investment Fund, many are speculating that it is, in fact, the real buyer of the club, and not the PCP Partners, who are according to the same sources, just a middle player. Some 12 years ago, the same group helped Sheik Mansour bin Zayed to buy Manchester City, who later became the dominant force in English football.

The Saudi Public Investment Fund is under the control of Prince Mohammad bin Salman. He will own 80 percent of the club, while Amanda Staveley from PCP Partners who led the negotiations will have 10 percent, the same as David and Simon Reuben.

Staveley is also expected to be on top of the club, either as a president of the board or something similar once the whole deal becomes valid.

Mike Ashley has been trying to sell the club for a long time. His relationship with the fans hasn’t been good almost since the moment he took over the Magpies. The American billionaire didn’t want to make huge investments into the squad, and the team was never competitive enough to make some notable results.

Newcastle has one of the biggest fanbase in England, and even though they had all the resources to become a powerhouse in the EPL, they were a mediocre team. Throughout the years, they would become one of those jo-jo clubs who are subsequently getting relegated and promoted almost every season.

Ashley never desired to use the reputation of the Magpies and its full marketing potential by bringing sounding names because it demanded a lot of money according to his calculations. That is why fans openly rebelled against him, often coming to the games only to show their dislike for the American owner.

It is no wonder why many celebrate this development, saying that whatever happens after Ashely could only improve the situation at Saint James Park.

One of the former managers of the club, Graeme Souness, commented on the situation this morning saying that every fan would no doubt welcome the new owners with their hands wide open. The Scottish legend also said that he believes Ashley wanted to sell the club as well, and to move on from something which he saw as a burden

“It will be welcomed by every Newcastle supporter, and I think even Ashley wants out. He’s made it plain that if someone comes up with the right price, he’d be out of there.”

After this, we are bound to see the creation of another super-team in the Premiership. Bin Salman is one of the wealthiest people in the world, and he will no doubt inject a massive amount of cash into the club. A scenario similar to the one with Man City is ahead, according to the majority of experts.

To summarize, there is a new titan on the horizon, the one which will cause an earthquake in the football world.