⚽️ Why Saudi Arabia picked up Newcastle Football Club

Express Research

EXPRESS RESEARCH

Dear reader,   The recent takeover of the Newcastle Football Club by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has caused a huge furore in the world of sports. The biggest question surrounding the Newcastle takeover is how it passed the Premier League’s so called ‘fit and standards’ test which was designed to prevent individuals associated with allegations of wrongdoing from owning a football club. For that matter, the PIF had previously too tried to acquire the club, but their bid was rejected by the Premier League citing piracy, the economic boycott of Qatar and human rights violations by the Saudi state.    Our story this week by Mira Patel looks at the geopolitical aspects of the takeover. From sports washing to sports diplomacy, there could be many ways to understand this latest move to buy a European club. As experts cited in the piece suggest, one need not condone the actions of Saudi Arabia, but see it in context of the greater game played by states for power, influence and acquisition.    Read the story: ‘No one buys a football club to make money’… so what’s behind Saudi picking up Newcastle United Sincerely, Adrija Roychowdhury

Read All Stories →

Why Bengal is obsessed with football?   'No one buys a football club to make money'… so what's behind Saudi picking up Newcastle United   Nagendra Prasad Sarbadhikari: The man who kicked off Indian football   From Hitler's Aryan show to shows of resistance… the politics of Olympics

Contact Us Unsubscribe About Us   Copyright © 2021 The Indian Express [P] Ltd. All Rights Reserved