The Athletic’s Matt Slater appeared on the latest edition of the ‘Football Today’ podcast where he discussed the issues that have delayed the ongoing Saudi-backed Newcastle United takeover attempt.
As per The Guardian, Newcastle United’s Saudi-backed takeover bid has been going through the Premier League’s checks since early April and despite this report from The Guardian claiming that these checks ‘normally take two weeks,’ the takeover bid is yet to be approved.
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The chief executive of England’s top-flight, Richard Masters, recently ‘faced questions from MPs on the delays surrounding’ this takeover. When asked why the process is yet to be completed, the Premier League chief is quoted as saying: “In a perfect world, takeovers would happen cleanly, clearly, and in a timely fashion. Sometimes things get complicated.”
One of the complications that this takeover bid has faced is the World Trade Organisation’s (WTO’s) ruling that the Saudi government ‘helped’ pirate television broadcaster BeoutQ to breach international piracy laws, as per the BBC. Qatari broadcaster BeIN Sports also reportedly asked the Premier League to block the Saudi-backed Toon takeover bid as a result of the links between the country’s government and piracy.
During his recent appearance on the Football Today podcast, Slater responded to a question about whether or not the Premier League can “have their cake and eat it” by approving the Saudi-backed Toon takeover bid without upsetting BeIN Sports who are “an important broadcast rights holder” by the podcast’s host Jon Mackenzie.
Slater replied by discussing what he believed could be the “worst-case scenario” for this takeover bid. The journalist said: “I guess a worst-case scenario would be they annoy both parties.
“So they annoy Saudi Arabia and that deal falls apart, then you don’t get the excitement of a new, wealthy backer getting behind another club, perhaps creating a ‘big seven’, a ‘big eight’, revitalising one of our oldest, most famous clubs.
“The fanbase there are desperate for new ownership, they’re fed up with Mike Ashley – if you block that and upset the Saudis, there’s a potential lose-lose there.”
Do you think that this 'worst-case scenario' is likely to happen?YES
NO
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TIF Thoughts…
As Slater explained, Newcastle United’s current owner, Mike Ashley, has been unpopular throughout his time at the club. With that in mind, as well as the fact that some reports have claimed that the Toon would become the Premier League’s wealthiest club if this takeover is approved, some Newcastle fans may be worried by the prospect of this “worst-case scenario” coming to fruition.