Soft power, competition from Qatar … what hides the takeover of Newcastle by Saudi Arabia – RMC Sport

Saudi Arabia agreed to buy 80% of the Newcastle club in the Premier League on Thursday. Specialist in the geopolitics of sport, Jean-Baptiste Guégan details for RMC Sport the diplomatic strategy behind this investment of around 350 million euros. Buying Newcastle thus makes it possible to restore the image of the Gulf country while trying a sporting coup in the Premier League.

Why Saudi Arabia bought Newcastle and not a Big Four club? What does this mean?

The takeover of Newcastle by the PIF, the Saudi sovereign fund, is first and foremost a market opportunity and a default choice. Two years ago, the Saudis had positioned themselves on a takeover of Manchester United and had offered four billion euros for the Mancunian club. The latter was not a seller for less than seven. Newcastle won to enter the Premier League. This is clearly, at all levels, a default choice. The city is less attractive, the club does not have the same history as the two of Manchester. It is obvious that if there had been another club available, imagine Liverpool, the Saudis would necessarily have referred to a more attractive club.

Are we in a sportwashing strategy to restore Saudi Arabia’s image, to make people forget the Khashoggi affair? Or does the country really want to develop a sports brand?

The Saudi investment in the Premier League via Newcastle is primarily aimed at improving the image of the Saudi kingdom, which has been marred by the war in Yemen and by thousands of deaths under the Saudi bombs. An image also linked to the death of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. First, there is a reputation issue. Saudi Arabia seeks to change its image and the representation that we have of Saudi Arabia. Then comes the second goal, a clear soft power and sportwashing goal.

The idea is for the Saudis to be able to make their kingdom attractive to investors and tourists. The Saudi kingdom has opened its borders to tourists outside of the Hajj pilgrimage. Today, the objective of the kingdom, at the head of which is the crown prince Mohammed ben Salman, is to modernize its economy and to open it more. This requires a much more attractive image. Today, of all the Gulf countries, the least attractive state is Saudi Arabia.

How has this Saudi soft power materialized in sports or elsewhere so far?

Initially, Saudi soft power was linked to religious influence and, on the contrary, a desire for conservatism. It was rather a break with the soft powers which were based on freedoms or on an image of modernity. With the arrival of Mohammed ben Salman to power, there has been a real evolution. It has materialized through projects such as the Neom project, a large infrastructure project at the level of the Red Sea. There is the “The Line” project, a kind of city of the future. And then new cities like Qiddiya, which hosts the Formula 1 Grand Prix, or Jeddah, which represents the Saudi window on modernity. Sport is on top of that. Saudi Arabia has been very active in sport for five years. Whether in terms of investments or organization of events.

We have seen him host boxing matches, F1 two years ahead of schedule. We have seen him invest a lot in football with the arrival of Giovinco or Bafétimbi Gomis and company. Now Saudi Arabia wants to become, like Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, a leading player in football. All with a medium-term objective: to host a World Cup and to be in any case one of the players who count, especially in relation to Qatari competition and Emirati success.

“The Saudi kingdom wants to show that it is modern”

What are the differences between the Saudi strategy and that of its Qatari and Emirati neighbors?

The Saudi strategy is a catch-up strategy. For a long time, they made fun of what people thought of them abroad and did not follow that logic. Soft power was belatedly theorized in Saudi Arabia.

The second thing is that the kingdom was late. Qatar was a forerunner and the Emirates were very active and managed to modernize their economy by opening up. The Saudis suffered from leaders who were literally too old to understand the importance of the international image. Image all the more degraded that the country was associated with the attacks of September 11 and therefore with international terrorism. They had to move.

Apart from this idea of ​​catching up, the Saudi strategy is also particular because, unlike Qatar, it is not a survival strategy. The Saudi kingdom wants to show that it is modern. This is the whole issue of the Saudi “Vision 2030” program. I’m not saying it’s a copy of the Emirati model, but through sport, we want to show a more open image of ourselves, that mentalities change.

It is also to show an image more in agreement with the Saudi youth who are more and more secularized and Westernized. Clearly, there is a desire to heal the image, a fortiori when one is a country responsible for butchering a journalist in an embassy. It is also the desire to open up to the world of the 21st century. This is why this strategy differs from those of Qatar and the Emirates. First by means, with a massive investment strategy. Behind, there is also the idea of ​​wanting to be the first country in the Gulf, a regional hegemony is playing out. Sport is an asset and Saudi Arabia cannot do without it.

Are diplomatic tensions between Qatar and Saudi Arabia, particularly with the beoutQ program, still as high? Could this influence the takeover of Newcastle?

The sale of Newcastle could only be made thanks to Saudi commitments on the end of beoutQ and the end of the systematic pirating of big sports TV rights that had blocked the Premier League (in March 2020). Even before negotiating, that was the prerequisite. The timing was good this time. People had forgotten about the Khashoggi case. Saudi Arabia has also benefited from a relative lull in the conflict in Yemen. There is also a normalization of relations with Qatar with the end of the blockade and a more classic and less intense rivalry than six months ago.

This explains why the timing of Newcastle’s sale resulted in a signing today. It is in all this logic that the sale could be possible. Politically, it was tenable by Boris Johnson and his government, even if the latter says he is not responsible for anything and that it does not concern him. The sale is also likely to be better received by competitive players who could take the matter to court. There, for example, we did not hear Qatar react and this is already a sign. The third thing is that we have seen public opinion move on. It was time to make this sale and take action on the buyout. We can simply be surprised at the lack of reaction from English fans to what is sportwashing.

“We will surely have second-class players paid dearly”

Premier League clubs have reacted against the arrival of this new investor …

We realized that the Premier League clubs had learned in the press of the takeover of Newcastle by the Saudi investment fund. This buyout decision is a bit surprising for clubs that weren’t aware of it. They reacted according to the attractiveness of the brand. When an actor as disparaged as Saudi Arabia comes to you, there is a real risk of damage for the brand and therefore for the issue of TV rights.

In addition, we are starting to have many Premier League clubs under a flag other than English. And that raises the question of the identity of this Premier League. Should it be a geopolitical instrument, that it should serve foreign interests outside of the football business? The reaction of the Premier League clubs is linked to the imperfect governance and also to the fact that Newcastle have operated in their corner. Today the Premier League is managed by the clubs and there, a state actor has entered. The PIF is much more tied to the government than the owners of Manchester City. There is a real risk of interference. Whatever documents are signed and presented to the press and the public.

Will Newcastle be able to invest crazy sums to compete with the big guys?

It should be remembered that the PIF is a sovereign fund, that is to say that its objective is to be profitable. It must finance both the Saudi social pact such as the fact that the Saudis do not pay taxes. The PIF must also finance infrastructure works. His ambition is not to spend money and throw it out the window. In doing so, it would call into question the future of the kingdom. The PIF is the armed wing of the kingdom and it is not a fund that will spend indiscriminately.

With that in mind, I think Newcastle’s sporting strategy will be more reasonable. Especially since there are two examples with PSG and Manchester City: it is not by investing crazy sums at the start that we win. We will have to be patient, with a medium-term strategy, and in an environment that is very competitive. This is in my opinion the main limit of Newcastle. Because opposite, there are the two clubs of Manchester, there is Liverpool, there is Arsenal which is not dead, there is Chelsea. To shine, if only in England, you have to be very strong.

This will force Saudi Arabia to make significant investments. But as a new player, Newcastle risks being constrained by others worried about a disruption of the market in the Premier League. Above all, Newcastle does not have the attractiveness of other clubs. This is not a London club, it is not a big English city or with the history of Manchester.

We will surely have second-class players paid dearly. I’m not sure if I see athletic success in the short term. In the medium term, I doubt it too. Saudi Arabia will not be able to socially hold crazy investments like those in Paris or Manchester City. This is not the goal of Mohammed ben Salman. If it is to give the image of an arrogant country by throwing money out the window, it is not the best way to bring serious tourists or investors to Saudi Arabia.

>> The Premier League is to be followed on RMC Sport