The takeover of Newcastle United has officially been confirmed and they are now the richest club in the history of football. The deal was given green light a few days ago and both parties were working hard to finalise the deal.
After 18 months of grit, Newcastle United finally have new owners. The consortium led by Saudi’s Public Investment Fund will be now owning 80 per cent of the company, with the remaining being equally shared amongst businesswoman Amanda Staveley and the property tycoons Reuben brothers.
With this, the tedious 14-year reign of Mike Ashley has come to an end. A duration that saw the club fall down from glory and become a mid-table team. The takeover will mean the most to the fans, who had started accepting the downfall of the club and were preparing to live with it.
Takeover of Newcastle United Will Make Them the Richest Club
The Story Behind The Hot Talk So Far
The Saudi consortium were expected to takeover Newcastle United one and a half years ago. But the procedure did not go through. They withdrew as they would have been subject to the ‘league’s owners’ and directors’ test’ after the Premier League identified their stake as a director with control over the club.
It was further understood that beIN Sports and the rival Premier League clubs had inappropriately influenced in denying the progress of the deal. However, there has been huge progress since.
The problems with the Qatari network, BeIN Sports over the illegal broadcasting of the Premier League has been resolved, which was considered a significant barrier. For the past four and a half years, they were unable to broadcast in Saudi Arabia because of some diplomatic dispute.
As a result of which its contents were pirated. And the confusion regarding the stake has also been cleared and the Premier League will not be obstructing the move, making way for the takeover to proceed.
The £300m takeover is now complete, which officially makes Newcastle United the richest football club in the world as the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund is valued at a staggering £320 billion.
To put things into perspective, the former richest football club, Manchester City, owned by Sheikh Mansoor, is valued at £23.3 million. After the completion of the takeover of Newcastle United, Prince Mohammed bin Salman is said to become the chairman and Yasir Al-Rumayyan the governor.
Impact Takeover of Newcastle United Can Have
The previous owner, Mike Ashley was keen to have the deal completed last year. After it failed to go through, he lashed at the inappropriate influencers. But that is not a matter to worry about now.
The Magpies used to belong at the top of the table. They were once worthy challengers for the Premier League title. But they started fading at the start of this century. And after Ashley took over the ownership, the club fell even hard. Since then, Newcastle have been relegated twice, and have become a lower half team after the latest promotion in 2016/17.
The fans had accepted the fact that this is where the team now belongs. However, they have been remarkably hoping after this takeover news broke out last year. And their prayers as there will be no happier fans in the world than them.
The takeover will definitely have a complete turnaround, just like what happened with Manchester City and PSG. New managerial and player signings will be made that will make the club regain its glory. Moreover, there will be another competitor for the top-4 spot, unnerving the traditional holders.
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