Newcastle shirt sponsor is latest Saudi investment in global sports
NEWCASTLE, England (AP) — Newcastle announced a shirt sponsor deal Friday with a Saudi Arabian company linked to the sovereign wealth fund that is the English soccer club’s majority owner and the new investor in golf's PGA Tour.
British media reported Newcastle's sponsorship by events management firm Sela is worth 25 million pounds ($31.5 million) annually on a multi-year deal.
Newcastle will play in the Champions League group stage next season for the first time in 20 years after placing fourth in the Premier League.
It was the first full season for Newcastle since a 300 million pound ($377 million) takeover in 2021 led by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) which manages more than $600 billion of Saudi state wealth.
PIF is chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and finances LIV Golf, which stunned the sport this week by merging with the PGA Tour and the European tour.
PIF also is a backer of Sela, which has assets including a luxury entertainment complex in Riyadh and a yacht club in Jeddah.
The Newcastle deal could draw scrutiny from the Premier League, which has rules to monitor deals with firms linked to club owners. The rules aim to ensure prices are not inflated beyond commercial rates.
The latest PIF investment in soccer follows what was effectively the nationalization this week of four top Saudi clubs including those of Cristiano Ronaldo and new recruit Karim Benzema.
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