Newcastle United are today considered the richest club in world football, a label that's an extension of the deep pockets of the club's ownership group which on paper has the capacity to outspend other teams.
It flexed that financial muscle in the January 2022 transfer window, spending more than any other team in Europe, to ensure the Magpies comfortably avoided the threat of relegation. Those player acquisitions paid off with the team cruising to an 11th-placed Premier League finish in 2021/22.
Newcastle have gone from strength to strength in 2022/23 under manager Eddie Howe and are on course to secure Champions League football as they sit third in the table at present. They also reached the Carabao Cup final, although they were beaten 2-0 by Manchester United at Wembley Stadium.
Resources had not been quite as plentiful in recent seasons under former owner Mike Ashley, but the narrative quickly flipped in October 2021 when a consortium took over with the promise of changing the fortunes of the passionately supported club and making it one of the big players in English and European football.
But the takeover by PCP Capital Partners, RB Sports & Media (Reuben brothers) and the Saudi Arabia state-run Public Investment Fund (PIF) didn't come without controversy. In fact, the deal took over a year to complete and it involved a geopolitical dispute, problematic human rights issues, and it even dragged the British Prime Minister into the conversation.
The Premier League eventually greenlit the transaction despite opposition from human rights organizations which claimed the Newcastle takeover was the latest high-profile case of sportwashing. The final hurdle involved Saudi Arabia agreeing to clamp down on piracy that was undermining Premier League rightsholder and broadcast partner beIN Sports of Qatar. Resolution of that dispute cleared the way for Newcastle to change hands with Magpie supporters dreaming of what could be in store on the field.
Newcastle's new owners net worth vs. Man City's owners net worth 🤑 pic.twitter.com/q0ghdOljQG
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) October 7, 2021
Who owns Newcastle United?
PIF became the majority shareholder and de facto owner of the club, with 80 percent of the shares acquired in October 2021.
The public face of PIF has been Yasir Al-Rumayyan, who is Governor of PIF, and Chairman of Newcastle United. He's also the Chairman of Saudi Aramco, one of the world's largest petroleum and natural gas companies.
PCP Capital Partners received 10 percent of the shares. The firm is the business of Amanda Staveley, who helped facilitate the takeover of Manchester City by Sheikh Mansour in 2008. Staveley, along with Al-Rumayyan, has been the public face of the deal.
The final 10 percent of shares went to the Reuben brothers, a pair of wealthy British businessmen.
“We are extremely proud to become the new owners of Newcastle United, one of the most famous clubs in English football,” said Yasir Al Rumayyan, head of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund. @Laura_Wright96 reports on this dealhttps://t.co/iwVPJ0ffNN pic.twitter.com/DXvvNfZBzu
— Bloomberg TV (@BloombergTV) October 8, 2021
How much did Newcastle United cost?
In total, the consortium paid Mike Ashley a reported $415 million for the club.
As mentioned above, the deal first came to light in April 2020, as the partners submitted the paperwork to take over Newcastle. The protracted nature of the deal complicated proceedings, and in September of 2020 it looked like it had collapsed. In fact, Newcastle United released a statement claiming that the league had officially rejected the consortium though the Premier League rejected the claim.
However, on October 7, 2021, it was announced that the takeover was official with many pointing to the settling of the beIN Sports piracy dispute as the key to unlocking the transaction.
That $415m price tag compares to the $270 million that Iranian-born British businessman Farhad Moshiri paid for Everton in 2016 and the $136 million paid by Serbian billionaire Dragan Solak and investment firm Sport Republic for an 80 percent controlling interest in Southampton.
Newcastle player transfers under new owners
One of the main complaints that fans voiced during Mike Ashley's tenure was a lack of investment, and a feeling that the ownership had no vision. That's something that the new decision-makers have claimed will change, and their early moves in the transfer market suggested just that, with the club making multiple moves in the expensive January 2022 transfer market.
| Player | Previous Club | Transfer fee |
| Bruno Guimaraes | Lyon | $43.4 million |
| Chris Wood | Burnley | $32.6 million |
| Dan Burn | Brighton | $17 million |
| Kieran Trippier | Atletico Madrid | $15.6 million |
The club appointed Dan Ashworth as Technical Director of Football in February 2022. Ashworth is well-regarded in the game, after his previous stints as technical director at Brighton, and director of elite development at the FA before that.
He is seen as someone with a long-term vision and, although the club splashed the cash in that first window in January 2022, the appointment of Ashworth was a promising sign that the club is looking to do more than just sign big names on big fees and hope they work well together.
Newcastle continued to spend in the summer of 2022 as they forked out £33m for centre-back Sven Botman from Lille and spent £15.75m on Aston Villa's Matt Targett. Goalkeeper Nick Pope was also signed for £10.35m from Burnley.
In the January 2023 winter window, that spending continued with the signing of Anthony Gordon in a £45m switch from Everton. They also signed Garang Kuol from Central Coast Mariners (£300,000) and Harrison Ashby from West Ham (£3m).
There has also been discussion of a new training complex, which could include a second, reduced-capacity stadium for the women's team and academy sides. According to reports, sites are being investigated by club leadership.
While final plans for the new training facility are still taking shape, the current training complex was upgraded in a significant way, confirming that the current owners mean business.