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The takeover of Newcastle United by a consortium backed by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) is a "disaster" for both the club and city, a human rights activist has warned.

The Premier League said it was satisfied the PIF was a separate entity from the Saudi authorities, which have been heavily criticised for alleged human rights abuses.

But Nicholas McGeehan, director of human rights organisation Fair Square, said there "is no separation" as the fund is chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud, whom he called the "de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia" and has been implicated in the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Image source, Reuters

Mr McGeehan said the prince was "clearly unfit to run football clubs", adding: "It's very obvious who this man is and what he has done. I think it's a disaster for the club and a disaster for the city."

Mr McGeehan said he understood the excitement of fans at getting rid of the maligned Mike Ashley as owner but fan groups and civic leaders in Newcastle should question whether they want the prince in charge,

"This club is important to the city, it's incredibly important to those supporters and it's part of the social fabric of out nation," Mr McGeehan said, adding: "It should not be allowed to fall into the hands of this man. People standing back and rolling the red carpet out for a murderer? That's not acceptable."

Mr McGeehan said the argument that other clubs, such as Manchester City, had been taken over by owners with links to regimes accused of human rights abuses was no defence.

He said: "I have a lot of sympathy with the fans but on the other hand I think fans are too invested and too caught up and passionate about their clubs to be able to dispassionately analyse this and say 'this is not a good thing'."

Geordie TV stars Ant and Dec have been tweeting about the takeover news. It's fair to say they're pleased.

Having completed changes in the boardroom, the new owners of Newcastle United will be keen to see some immediate alterations in the club's fortunes on the pitch.

Steve Bruce's Magpies are yet to win in the Premier League this season and are currently languishing in the relegation zone, their three draws and four losses from seven games coupled with a minus eight goal difference putting them in 19th in the table.

Image source, Getty Images

In the wake of their latest loss at Wolverhampton Wanderers, a survey of 5,649 fans by the Newcastle United Supporters' Trust found 94% wanted Bruce (pictured above) to step down as manager and 96% were not confident Newcastle would remain in the Premier League this season.

The Magpies will next face Tottenham Hotspur at St James' Park on 17 October.

The return of injured striker Callum Wilson cannot come quickly enough - Newcastle have claimed just two victories in their 17 Premier League games without the 29-year-old.

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BBC Radio Newcastle

The takeover of Newcastle United is "great news for the city" as a whole, Newcastle council Leader Nick Forbes has said.

He told BBC Radio Newcastle: "It does feel like we are at the moment of change after 14 years of a regime that I think everybody realises hasn't been great for the club.

"Everybody is in agreement that the club needs a new purpose, a new direction, new ownership and new leadership."

Image source, Getty Images

Mr Forbes also said he was "really pleased" the Premier League "recognised there is a difference" between the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) behind the takeover and the Saudi Arabian authorities.

"A lot of people have contacted me with concerns over human rights in Saudi Arabia," Mr Forbes said.

"If there is a demonstrable difference between the investment fund and that is not controlled by the Saudi state then I think it is all lights go for the takeover," he added.

Matthew Raisbeck
BBC Newcastle Sport

This is the news many Newcastle United fans have been waiting for for so long, the appetite for change at the club has been so great for much of Mike Ashley's 14-and-a-half years in charge.

It all happened so quickly and really came out of nowhere yesterday afternoon. The Saudi Arabian Public Interest Fund (PIF) is going to provide 80% of the money and take an 80% stake in the club.

One of the key issues that led to the deal faltering last year was the Premier League wanted more clarity on whether the PIF was separate from the Saudi state.

It has now had the answer and assurances it wanted and the consortium has apparently proved the Saudi state will not have control of the club.

Image source, Getty Images

There was also the issue of broadcast piracy and yesterday the Saudis settled an alleged dispute with Qatar-based beIN Sport, which has Premier League TV rights for the Middle East and North Africa.

Saudi Arabia has agreed to show beIN Sport content in the country and shut down pirate stations that had been showing Premier League games illegally.

If the piracy was ongoing and, although the Saudis denied this, if the Premier League felt that was state-sponsored and the PIF was part of the state, the league couldn't let them own Newcastle United because their product and one of their rights' holders was having their content damaged.

That appears to not be an issue now, and it has removed a significant obstacle and cleared the way for this takeover to go through.

The questions over Saudi Arabia's human rights record will still be a key issue for many people and I would expect over the next few days and beyond we will hear from human rights groups about this.

As for the football side of things, some patience will be required as Newcastle United can't sign any new players until January when the transfer window re-opens.

But I don't think patience will be a problem for Newcastle fans. The main thing has been the removal and departure of Mike Ashley, which is what they will get from this.

Newcastle United are going to be a "major player" now the takeover deal is done, says the Telegraph’s football writer Luke Edwards.

“If I was the rest of the Premier League, I would be worried because we are talking about the richest, deepest, wealthiest public sovereign wealth fund in the world,” Edwards told the Football Daily podcast.

“They are going to be a major player now - we’ve seen what PSG and Manchester City have done, how they’ve transformed the landscape of European football. And Newcastle now, effectively, have owners that are wealthier than both of those state-owned football clubs.

Image source, Getty Images

“There will be some heavy spending, I think it will be gradual in the first season and the initial priority will be to make sure they stay in the Premier League.

“Newcastle are going to be a state-owned football club, rightly or wrongly. That will provoke some very strong emotions in some people, there will be a lot of bitterness, a lot of regret – but that won't be the emotion on Tyneside.”

Listen to more of the discussion on the Newcastle takeover deal on Football Daily from 32:10 on BBC Sounds.

Amanda Staveley, who led the group to buy Newcastle United, has told NUFC fans they are the "greatest in the world".

The British businesswoman greeted supporters at the Jesmond Dene Hotel, where the consortium members had been awaiting the announcement.

Image source, PA Media

She told supporters: "It has taken us four years to get here today. I know everyone has got a lot of questions about managers and players and things.

Image source, PA Media

"Right now, we just want to get in and do a review of the business and we are going to let you all know the plans.

"We're here to invest. We are patient. We are genuinely here to try and make sure that we try and become the best custodians of the club we can be. You are the greatest fans in the world."

Image source, PA Media

Newcastle supporters are ready for a new start, says Magpies fan and host of the Athletic’s Pod on the Tyne Taylor Payne.

“We think we are ready for a new dawn at Newcastle, we’re ready for a new team that can compete and it was never going to get that chance under Mike Ashley," Mr Payne told the Football Daily podcast.

“He had no interest in moving the club forward and that is unfair on fans who pay their hard-earned money into the club.

Image source, Getty

“We are excited about what could come under the new owners - we would like to see our club playing at the very top level, challenging on all fronts, for all trophies, and bringing exciting times back to St James’ Park.

"We don’t expect to win the Champions League and we don’t expect to win the Premier League, we just want that opportunity to compete and have a club which we can proud of - because I think there’s a number of Newcastle fans who haven’t been particularly proud of Newcastle United and how it’s been run in the last few years."

Listen to more of the discussion on the Newcastle takeover deal on Football Daily from 32:10 on BBC Sounds.

Newcastle's new non-executive chairman, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, says his consortium is "extremely proud" to become the owners, external of "one of the most famous clubs in English football".

"We thank the Newcastle fans for their tremendously-loyal support over the years and we are excited to work together with them," he said.

Amanda Staveley, CEO of PCP Capital Partners which will have a 10% stake in the club, said: "This is a long-term investment. We are excited about the future prospects for Newcastle United.

"We intend to instill a united philosophy across the club, establish a clear purpose, and help provide leadership that will allow Newcastle United to go on to big achievements over the long term.

"Our ambition is aligned with the fans – to create a consistently successful team that’s regularly competing for major trophies and generates pride across the globe."

Jamie Reuben of RB Sports & Media, which is also taking 10%, said: "We look forward to a great future for Newcastle United.

"Newcastle is a fantastic city, which is why our family has been investing heavily in the area for many years. To become part of this great club and its amazing fans is a privilege."

Many Newcastle United fans are excited about the Saudi Arabian-backed takeover of the club.

The takeover of Newcastle United by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium raises serious questions about football governance, Newcastle Central Labour MP Chi Onwurah has said.

She said the last few years under Mike Ashley had seen fans face an "agony of frustration, disappointment and deception" which raised the need for "proper regulatory oversight of football so that this does not happen again".

But the takeover also raises concern about governance, she said, adding: "Many of us are horrified by the human rights record of Saudi Arabia which stands in direct opposition to the values of our city."

Image source, Uk Parliament

The Premier League approved the deal after being satisfied the consortium was not controlled by the Saudi Arabian authorities.

Ms Onwurah said: "I know that the end of the Ashley era is a day of celebration and joy for many.

"I understand the new owners believe this investment is a sign of change and a desire to open up on the part of Saudi Arabia and I hope that is true.

"I recognise the power of sport to communicate and bring people together, but as an anti-apartheid activist for many years, I believe sport is political. Certainly, this takeover has shown that."

She also said the recent failed plans for a European Super League supported by some of the games' biggest clubs but widely condemned by fans showed "football governance is broken".

The takeover brings to an end Mike Ashley's 14-year ownership of Newcastle.

"The last 14 years under Mike Ashley have just been horrible as a fan," says Charlotte Robson of the Newcastle United Supporters' Trust.

Since Mr Ashley bought the Magpies for £134m in 2007, the club has been relegated from the Premier League to the Championship twice, although bounced back both times winning the title.

There have been repeated mass protest by fans at his running of the club and he has wanted to sell it for a while.

Image source, PA Media

Ms Robson said: "There's been no investment in the club. If you visited St James' Park, you would see that it is falling apart, there's wires coming out of the wall, there is places where TVs obviously used to be, it needs painting, it needs a new roof and then past those things, like the academy.

"Newcastle United's academy used to be an aspiration thing for youth around the whole region, and it's not anymore.

"There has been no investment, and then past that, our football's been terrible, the ambition has just been pummelled out of our club, and our fans are just so excited, that this sort of is a new dawn and hopefully a new era for Newcastle United."

Newcastle United have released details of the new make up of the board after the takeover by an investment consortium funded mainly by the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF).

In a statement, the club said: "The group is comprised of long-term, patient investors who have every confidence in the future success of the club.

"Today's announcement is the conclusion of a thorough and detailed process that has allowed the investment group to arrive at a deal that benefits all stakeholders and will leave Newcastle United well-placed to pursue a clear, long-term strategy.

"His Excellency Yasir Al-Rumayyan, governor of PIF, will serve as non-executive chairman of Newcastle United. Amanda Staveley (pictured below), chief executive of PCP Capital Partners, will have one seat on the board. Jamie Reuben will also be a director of the club, representing RB Sports & Media."

The statement added the consortium wanted to "harness the club's potential and build upon the club's legacy".

Image source, PA Media

We look back at the billionaire businessman's time owning Newcastle United.

The NUFC takeover was first agreed in April 2020 but nearly collapsed four months later when the consortium walked away when the Premier League offered arbitration to settle a disagreement on who would control the club.

That would decide whether the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF), which is providing 80% of the £300m deal, was separate to the Saudi state and therefore whether it would pass the league's owners' and directors' test, which measures the suitability of owners at a club.

Image source, Getty Images

There was also a rights dispute in the Middle East to contend with. Qatar-based beIN Sports, a major television rights holder of the Premier League, had objected to the takeover by the Saudi Arabian-backed consortium after it was banned from broadcasting in Saudi in 2017 amid a diplomatic row and transport blockade.

That blockade ended in January with tensions between Qatar and Saudi Arabia easing, and the latter agreed to settle the former's $1bn arbitration claim over pirate broadcasts of football matches to Saudi audiences by the BeoutQ network.

Now the PIF has been deemed to be separate from the Saudi authorities, and helped by the resolution of the TV rights deal, the Premier League has finally approved the takeover.

Human rights campaigners including Amnesty International have condemned the takeover of Newcastle United by a Saudi Arabian-backed consortium.

The state has been accused of human rights abuses, which Amnesty International says should have been a factor in deciding whether the takeover proceeded.

"Instead of allowing those implicated in serious human rights violations to walk into English football simply because they have deep pockets, we've urged the Premier League to change their owners' and directors' test to address human rights issues," said Sacha Deshmukh, Amnesty International chief executive.

Image source, Getty Images

"The phrase 'human rights' doesn't even appear in the owners' and directors' test despite English football supposedly adhering to Fifa standards.

"We've sent the Premier League a suggested new human rights-compliant test and we reiterate our call on them to overhaul their standards on this.

"As with Formula One, elite boxing, golf or tennis, an association with top-tier football is a very attractive means of rebranding a country or person with a tarnished reputation. The Premier League needs to better understand the dynamic of sportswashing and tighten its ownership rules."

The Premier League declined to comment.

The Premier League said in a statement: "The Premier League, Newcastle United Football Club and St James Holdings Limited have today settled the dispute over the takeover of the club by the consortium of PIF, PCP Capital Partners and RB Sports & Media.

"Following the completion of the Premier League’s owners’ and directors’ test, the club has been sold to the consortium with immediate effect.

"The legal disputes concerned which entities would own and/or have the ability to control the club following the takeover.

"All parties have agreed the settlement is necessary to end the long uncertainty for fans over the club’s ownership.

"The Premier League has now received legally-binding assurances that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia will not control Newcastle United Football Club.

"All parties are pleased to have concluded this process which gives certainty and clarity to Newcastle United Football Club and their fans."

The consortium taking over Newcastle United is led by British businesswoman Amanda Staveley and her company PCP Capital Partners, but 80% of the £300m fee comes from the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) headed by by the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

The Premier League was satisfied however that PIF is a separate entity from the Saudi authorities, which have been heavily criticised over alleged involvement in human rights abuses as well as the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi, with the consortium passing the Premier League's owners' and directors' test despite objections from campaigners.

Image source, Getty Images

Ms Staveley, who is reported to be worth £115m, dropped out of Cambridge University, previously dated Prince Andrew, and began her route to Middle Eastern influence after setting up a restaurant near Newmarket racecourse where wealthy horse owners often dropped by.

Also involved in the consortium are Reuben Brothers, a financial firm owned by British businessmen David and Simon Reuben who are said to be worth more than £16bn.

Image source, Getty Images

The takeover of Newcastle United by a Saudi Arabia-backed consortium has been confirmed.

The £300m deal brings to an end 14 years of Mikes Ashley's ownership of the Magpies, but questions have been raised about the new owners' links to the country's ruling family and alleged human rights violations.

Follow this live page for updates and reaction to the news, or tune into BBC Radio Newcastle for more.