Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, Amanda Staveley and the Reuben Brothers could soon learn about the fate of their bid to buy Newcastle United with the World Trade Organization expected to release their report on beoutQ today.
It could have huge repercussions for the proposed £300 million Magpies takeover, and the Daily Telegraph’s Newcastle United correspondent Luke Edwards has shared what he has heard about the report on Twitter, claiming it doesn’t bode well:
Hearing the WTO report condemns Saudi Arabia in the strongest possible terms over piracy… does not bode well, but what do I know, I’m not a lawyer?
— Luke Edwards (@LukeEdwardsTele) June 16, 2020
A verdict from the Premier League is expected afterwards, and it’s safe to say that they have found themselves in a huge dilemma given that they frown against broadcast piracy.
BeIN SPORTS claims that Saudi-backed beoutQ has cost them one billion US dollars in lost subscriptions, lost advertising revenue, legal fees and technical reports given their unprecedented scale of piracy.
Separating Saudi from PIF could be hard to do given that the Kingdom’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman doubles as the chairman of the sovereign wealth fund, and it will be interesting to see if the would-be Newcastle owners are able to pass the Owners’ and Directors’ Test after nine weeks of answering questions.
American businessman Henry Mauriss will be watching every development with keen interest, and he won’t hesitate to table his own bid should the Saudis’ £300 million bid fall through.
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