Newcastle takeover: Story so far as Saudi breakthrough gives fans fresh hope

A £300million deal was agreed in April 2020 for Mike Ashley to sell the Magpies to a consortium fronted by Amanda Staveley, ending his controversial tenure at the club.

With both parties in agreement regarding the terms of the deal the hope was that the transaction could be completed before that summer providing that the Premier League ratified the takeover.

Unfortunately it was at that point when things spiraled somewhat out of control and away from footballing matters entirely.

Here's everything that you need to know about the Newcastle United takeover and where we stand now.

Newcastle United takeover: The consortium

To say that the buying party for Newcastle United are flush with cash is perhaps the understatement of the century.

Amanda Staveley is the figure of the consortium, a British businesswoman and private equity investor with close connections in the middle east.

Her company, PCP Capital Partners, have joined forces with British property investors the Reuben brothers and most notably, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) of Saudi Arabia,

It's expected that the proposed move would see PIF own 80% of the club, while PCP Partners and the Reuben Brothers would own 10% apiece.

Newcastle United takeover: Mike Ashley's stance

It's safe to say that the Sports Direct mogul's time at St James' Park has been controversial to say the least.

With a distinct lack of investment in the club's infrastructure and playing squad, Newcastle have struggled to compete with their Premier League rivals and found themselves a long way from where a club like the Magpies would hope to be.

The relationship between Ashley and the supporters has been fractured for many years with fans now adamant that the club would be better served under new ownership.

Ashley initially valued the club at around £400million but in fairness to him, the London-based businessman accepted a negotiated offer of £300million and has since been doing everything in his power to push the sale of the club through.

Newcastle United takeover: Legal dispute

While the takeover deal was agreed between Ashley and the buying consortium in April 2020, what's happened since has been far from straight forward.

A typically routine owners' and directors' test from the Premier League was the first obstacle as a delay in making a decision resulted in the PIF, Amanda Staveley and the Reuben Brothers withdrawing their offer due to 'the prolonged process under the current circumstances coupled with global uncertainty'.

The issue was PIF's relationship with the Saudi Arabian state with the crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman being both the chairman of the PIF and the country's deputy prime minister.

That represented a significant problem the Premier League ruling that the members of the Saudi Arabian government would become club directors, meaning that they'd need to undergo the league's owners' and directors' test, a decision that is still under arbitration.

The other key issue was a long-running dispute between Saudi Arabia and Qatar following the former's decision to ban Qatari media giants, beIN Sports, from broadcasting in the country.

The beIN Corporation, an official broadcasting partner of the Premier League, launched an international investment arbitration against Saudi Arabia for damages totalling more than $1 billion.

Qatar also accused Saudi Arabia of failing to deal with a pirate broadcaster, beoutQ, who were sharing beIN's content without permission.

Newcastle United takeover: What next?

The potential takeover has been handed a significant boost with the news that Saudi Arabia has reversed its decision to ban beIN Sport from operating in the country.

As a result Premier League, UEFA and FIFA matches will be broadcast legally in the country following a four-and-a-half year absence.

Mike Ashley and the buying party will need to renegotiate the deal if it is given the green light by the authorities, but it's thought that both parties are still very keen to get a deal done.

With this legal dispute between Qatar and Saudi Arabia now resolved, it's thought that the Premier League's decision over whether PIF will pass the owners' and directors' test will be 'a moral question', rather than a legal one.

There is, however, the matter of Mike Ashley's Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) against the Premier League which is scheduled for January 3.

While the takeover deal certainly isn't guaranteed to go through, the feeling is that improved relations between the Premier League and Saudi Arabia will go a long way to moving a potential £300million deal in the right direction, bringing a long and complicated saga to what will surely be a prompt conclusion to the delight and widespread relief of supporters.