The £1.1trillion PIF club you probably haven't heard of after Newcastle United & Saudi 'big four'
Newcastle United are no longer at the forefront of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund’s football plans.
The 2021 takeover of Newcastle was PIF’s first major football club takeover and brought with it real progress for the Premier League side.
Almost four years on, The Magpies have escaped relegation, qualified for the Champions League twice and ended a 70-year domestic trophy drought.
But financial restrictions have limited just how quickly Newcastle have been able to progress, while proposed changes behind the scenes regarding the training ground and stadium have stalled. Newcastle have upgraded its Darsley Park training base since the PIF takeover but a new state-of-the-art training complex, which was previously teased in the club’s financial accounts, is yet to be formally confirmed.
Limited spending in recent seasons has only increased frustration amongst supporters and added fuel to the speculation that Newcastle are no longer PIF’s priority when it comes to football. Ultimately, Newcastle are at the forefront of PIF’s plans when it comes to football in the Premier League and Europe, where the biggest audiences lie.
But the soverign wealth fund have since invested significantly in football domestically in Saudi Arabia.
In 2023, PIF completed a quadruple takeover of the ‘big four’ Saudi Pro League teams Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli. It brought with it significant investment to raise the profile of football in the country with many big name players opting to leave Europe in favour of joining the Saudi Pro League.
Big transfer fees and even bigger wages became the norm for the four Saudi clubs. But lurking in the background was a longer-term, more ambitious project that could now become a real force of Saudi football.
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The sixth PIF-owned club
Neom Sports Club in Tabuk are now in the Saudi Pro League following back-to-back promotions and is set to become a real force in Saudi Arabian football.
Amid the quadruple Saudi Pro League ‘big four’ takeover in 2023, the Saudi Sports Ministry confirmed that football club Al-Suqoor would be taken over and rebranded as Neom.
It means Neom SC are technically the only football club 100% owned by PIF and therefore the richest club in world football. PIF hold an 85% stake in Newcastle and 75% stakes in Saudi Pro League sides Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli.
What is Neom?
Neom is a planned mega-city that is being built on the northwest coast of Saudi Arabia. The project involved the construction of multiple cities (including ‘The Line’), airports, tourist areas as well as a football stadium to host matches at the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
The stadium will be the future home of Neom SC with construction set to begin in 2027. Currently Neom SC play at the 12,000 capacity King Khalid Sports City Stadium in Tabuk.
Neom have recently been credited with an interest in signing midfielder Granit Xhaka from Bayer Leverkusen. The Swiss midfielder has also been heavily linked with a move to Newcastle’s Premier League rivals, Sunderland.