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Move to kick start new Newcastle stadium

Newcastle United’s owners are open to selling a minority stake in the club in order to help fund significant infrastructure projects, including a potential replacement for St James’ Park and a purpose-built training ground.

People familiar with the matter have told The Athletic that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) retain a long-term commitment to Newcastle, the club they bought from Mike Ashley for £305million in 2021.  Nevertheless, they are willing to dilute their current 85 per cent shareholding and have been approached by possible investors. The British Reuben family own the other 15 per cent of Newcastle.

David Hopkinson, Newcastle’s chief executive, has been pushing to end the sense of stasis regarding the club’s stadium plans and training facilities, both of which have become a source of frustration. St James’ is routinely sold-out but is in need of refurbishment, while Eddie Howe’s first-team squad continue to train in an environment which is more adequate than elite in spite of ongoing improvements.

While a final decision on whether to build a new ground or expand their iconic home is yet to be taken, The Athletic has long reported that senior figures at Newcastle have expressed internally that the preference would be to move.

Both options would be complicated and expensive and although the club have commissioned detailed concepts and designs for staying and going, material progress has been limited and slow, not helped by frequent changes in the leadership structure at the club. Hopkinson intends to change this.

While PIF was never going to pay for a new stadium outright — Newcastle have always been viewed as a long-term investment intended to bring them an eventual profit — any project of that sort would require a notable injection of equity as well as outside financing.

The belief at Newcastle is that PIF selling a minority percentage of the club could kick start that process and that there are institutional and personal investors willing to pay their way into a business which has largely shown itself to be recession-proof. Internally at Newcastle, there is a view that the club could eventually be worth in the region of £5 billion ($6.7bn). Discussions with outside parties, which have not been initiated by PIF, remain at a formative stage.

 

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