The Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund have been reported to be close to completing their takeover of Newcastle in recent weeks but this could all go up in smoke as doubts have just arisen over alleged involvements with a certain black box of dubious legality.
The purported takeover of Mike Ashley’s Newcastle has reportedly been held up due to the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund’s alleged involvement with this highly questionable black box.
Takeover talks regarding the £300m sale of the Tyneside Premier League club, brokered by financier Amanda Staveley, have been going on for weeks with the prospective Saudi owners including Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman and are believed to have a net worth of a massive £320billion.
The deal has been sitting with the Premier League but is yet to be completed with The Sun reporting that the Saudi PIF’s alleged involvement with an £80 black box by the name of beoutQ has got the league investigating the deal.
The pirate black box allows viewers to illegally access content from the likes of Sky, BBC, Netflix and Amazon for free. Premier League matches are also available for live viewing although the Saudis had previously denied any links to piracy on the beoutQ platform.
It’s claimed that the Premier League received evidence earlier this week which appears to establish a clear link between the Saudi state and a TV service which streams sporting events illegally.
Giles Watling MP, a Conservative member of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, urged that a select committee be the watchdog to investigate the supposed Saudi-based beoutQ.
In an email to the select committee, seen by the PA, Watling wrote: “I am writing to request that the Committee holds an oral evidence session on the theft of UK sport by the Saudi-based pirate operation beoutQ, which has been stealing and broadcasting every major UK sporting competition for almost three years, including the Premier League.”