The Saudi Public Investment Fund, Newcastle United’s paymasters, are a leviathan presence in football. They have invested everywhere, at every level.
The Magpies, who cost PIF just £305m in October 2021, are actually one of their more modest investments. In terms of the Saudis’ total committed spend in sport, add a zero to that figure. Then another. Then double it.
For context, the owners of Newcastle United pledged more than £305m in wages and fees to bring one player, Neymar, to Al-Hilal. In total, they have invested more than £3bn in the Saudi Pro League.
A closeup shot of the Newcastle United badge
Photo by Kristian Skeie – UEFA/UEFA via Getty Images
But even that figure is dwarfed by the sums involved in staging the 2034 World Cup. On top of physical infrastructure, countless man hours and petrodollars have been spent forming alliances with confederations, striking sponsorship deals and generally inserting themselves into the game’s very architecture.
It’s the kind of excess that Newcastle would love to see reflected on Tyneside in the transfer market, but Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) at both Premier League and UEFA level have stifled their ambitions.
Yes, since PIF opened their little enclave of Riyadh in the north east of England, the club’s spending has boomed.
Wages have doubled, while amortisation (which is how we football finance dweebs account for transfer fees over a period of time) has trebled. And with PIF planning to build a 70,000-seater stadium and a world-class new training complex, the Saudis can hardly be accused of being spendthrift.
Chart showing Newcastle United's revenue and squad cost since PIF takeover
Newcastle squad cost vs revenue graph Credit: Adam Williams/TBR Football/GRV Media
But for as long as PSR is in place, Newcastle won’t be able to use brute force to spend their way into the game’s elite. Instead, the rules have demanded a much more sophisticated, patient approach.
Since the very beginning when Amanda Staveley became the public face of the new regime, they have had to manage expectations among the fanbase and innovate to create more PSR headroom. By any metric, they have overdelivered so far.
Amanda Staveley applauds fans at a Newcastle United fixture
Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images
Commercial income has soared, albeit with a little help from one or two cosy sponsorship deals with PIF-owned companies. Matchday income too is booming, with both general admission and premium hospitality elements of the fanbase energised by Eddie Howe’s League Cup-winning side and more willing to part with cash at St James’ Park as a result.
One feature of the masterplan outlined at the very beginning of Saudi era hasn’t yet materialised: the multi-club model.
However, that could change very soon.
PIF’s multi-club model may offer Newcastle route into future Club World Cup
One of Staveley’s first big reveals at Newcastle was PIF’s interest in buying a sister club. She is understood to have been a personal champion of the multi-club system.
While Staveley was still with the club, several potential deals in South America and Europe were explored.
As revealed by TBR Football last week, however, the multi-club project has not ended with her departure.
PIF have also pondered establishing more of a traditional multi-club network with Newcastle as the mothership in the past
They have been linked with several clubs previously owned by 777 Partners, another multi-club vehicle which collapsed last year
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Newcastle’s owners are now working on two takeover opportunities, one in the MLS and one in Scandinavia.
Sources have suggested that the investments themselves could be handled by SURJ, the sports-specific arm of the Public Investment Fund.
Why? TBR Football spoke exclusively to University of Liverpool football finance lecturer and Price of Football podcast host Kieran Maguire for his analysis.
“They will have an eye on an expanded Club World Cup in 2029 and in future years,” he said, explaining how an arms-length takeover of a new club via SURJ could satisfy FIFA’s rules on dual ownership of teams competing in the tournament.
A closeup shot of the Club World Cup trophy
Photo by FRANCK FIFE/AFP via Getty Images
“We saw that one of the South American clubs was booted out because of conflicts of interest with multi-club links. I think this is forward-planning as much as anything else.
“If you completed an investment in another club through SURJ, you could still cash in from some of the benefits for Newcastle but it also gives you a degree of separation as far as the conflict of interest rules are concerned.”
In its expanded 32-team format, the Club World Cup in the United States is effectively being underwritten by PIF and SURJ. Via SURJ, the Saudis have indirectly financed DAZN’s £750m TV deal for the tournament, which is where the vast majority of its enormous prize money is drawn.
PIF-owned Al-Hilal made the quarter-finals at the expense of Manchester City. They are also a headline sponsor for the competition with PIF branding displayed next to the likes of Coca-Cola and Adidas.
Saudi Arabia are in the running to stage the 2029 edition of the Club World Cup, though they face competition from Qatar, who are also tight with FIFA president Gianni Infantino.
Newcastle owners looking at MLS and Scandinavia for very different reasons
The average franchise value of an MLS team is around £530m. That is much greater than any value in Scandinavia.
“MLS is a big opportunity to make money because of the conditions in that market,” explains Maguire.
“They have a system of cost controls which mean that, unlike the Premier League, you are always going to make money. It makes sense that they are looking there.
“Scandinavia is more likely a talent identification arrangement. They have good infrastructure in that market and that can help with access to players for Newcastle and developing Saudi Arabian players too.”