‘Good example’ - UEFA chief name checks Newcastle United amid FFP and ownership structure debate

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin has name dropped Newcastle United as a ‘good example’ of how clubs should be run. Speaking to the Guardian, Ceferin was asked whether UEFA felt threatened by the Saudi Pro League after a summer of lavish spending from the division.

A whole host of big name players were tempted to leave Europe and move to Saudi Arabia in the summer, however, Ceferin believes that the league won’t compete with European competitions and that Newcastle United are a model that people should follow on how to intelligently spend money: "In England, I think the Saudi-owned club is a good example of how you should work.” Ceferin said.

“Because Newcastle didn’t buy superstars yet they qualified for the Champions League. I was surprised. I expected them to buy many players for the new season, but it wasn’t the case and they played very well."

Ceferin was also asked to address the issue of state-run clubs and if the current rules allow for openness and transparency regarding their ownership structure. Ceferin admitted he did not know that Newcastle United had to show proof regarding separation between their owners and the Saudi state, but insisted that as long as clubs abide by the rules, then there was no issue.

Ceferin said: “To be honest I didn’t know that [about Newcastle]. But we also have discussions about multi-club ownership. No concrete solutions yet, but do you want there to be de facto multi-club ownership and we pretend it’s not the case? Or do you want us to say: “You can do it under these and these conditions but not with full control over the clubs”? For me, state-owned clubs can be more transparent, if they respect the rules, than hedge fund clubs.

He continued: “I’m not worried about state-owned clubs as long as they respect the rules. I’m more worried about hedge fund-owned clubs. With hedge funds, you never know exactly who is behind them. It’s very hard to know because they are, many times, managing money for investors. 

“Where I see a big difference, and maybe this is a bit simplistic, is that state-owned clubs want to win. Whether it’s also for name-washing or not, I don’t enter into this. But they want to win. 

“With purely financial funds it’s important to get money and winning is not the main goal. For state-owned clubs, the goal is not to take money out, so I think those clubs should be more sustainable. With the others, it’s very hard to know who is behind it. It can also be a hedge fund where a state is behind it. But I prefer that it’s clear ownership. And the rules are clear: if they don’t respect them, they get punished.”

Ceferin also reiterated his belief that Financial Fair Play is working in its current guise, i.e limiting clubs to spending 70% of their revenues on wages, transfers and agents. Newcastle United have been keen to ensure they do not fall foul of either UEFA’s FFP rules or the Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability Regulations, rules that require them to not make a loss of more than £105m over a three-year period.