Football attracts Saudi investment to England’s north-east

THESE DAYSPIFPIF Saudi Arabian flags often fly among football fans in Newcastle, a city in the north-east of England. That has been happening since October 2021, when the kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (), a sovereign wealth fund, , the beloved but perennially underperforming local football team. Celebrating fans rushed to St James’ Park, the club’s stadium, waving flags and wearing tea-towels on their heads as improvised keffiyehs.Two years later hopes are rising that the ’s investment is but the first drop of a torrent of Saudi cash into the region. The model is the takeover of Manchester City by Sheikh Mansour of Abu Dhabi in 2008, which was followed by billions of pounds of Emirati investment into the city.