Newcastle owners PIF now want £760m deal that will give them major power at Premier League HQ
Today at 01:16 PM
In a week in which behind-the-scenes Premier League drama spilled into the public domain, Newcastle United owners PIF are now in talks for another business deal that could prove controversial.
The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) spent £305m to acquire 80 per cent of Newcastle in October 2021 – pocket change compared to the circa £700bn worth of assets they have under management.
In the wake of that takeover, Premier League clubs voted to strengthen rules on associated party transactions (APT) in order to prevent Newcastle from striking artificially inflated commercial deals.
In what is widely viewed as a counterstrike against the Premier League in 115 charges case, Man City – who, like Newcastle are owned by a Gulf state – have challenged the APT rules in the arbitration courts.
While there is huge degree of ambiguity around whether it constitutes a ‘win’ for City, they have at least had some elements of the rules deemed unlawful.
Newcastle were one of a handful of clubs to give evidence in favour of Man City at the tribunal, alongside Everton and Chelsea.
And with that drama still raging on, Newcastle’s owners are now eyeing another deal that could have ramifications at a league-wide level.
- READ MORE: Newcastle 'flop' rejected a return to St James' Park this summer and is now in Man City's sights
PIF want DAZN deal
DAZN are one of the Premier League’s enormous stable of international broadcasters, who collectively now provide as much value to the competition as the domestic media partners.
As reported by Reuters, the Public Investment Fund are now seeking a £760m acquisition of 10 per cent of DAZN.
While this would be above board, the tightening Ven diagram between club and media ownership is starting to spark conversations among analysts and commentators about potential complexities.
Media and ownership links – a conflict of interest?
Such is the finite pool of individuals and groups wealthy enough to own a Premier League club, there are a number of overlaps in terms of them also holding interests in media companies.
With nation states now playing a bigger role in the ownership sphere, there are bound to be even further complications.
Indeed, Newcastle fans will remember that one of the main blocks to the takeover in 2021 was protests from Qatar, Saudi’s rival in the gulf.
Qatar’s sports broadcaster BeIn was having their coverage pirated on an industrial scale in Saudi Arabia at the time.
Now, Aston Villa co-owners Atairos are stakeholders in Comcast, the parent company of Sky Sports, which some have suggested could constitute a conflict of interest too.
