Premier League told him to block Saudi-backed offer for Newcastle by his broadcast partner

The Premier League has been asked to consider blocking a Saudi-backed consortium’s attempt to buy Newcastle by one of the league’s top streaming partners.

The northeast club is reportedly about to be sold to a sovereign wealth fund involving Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman for around £ 300 million.

However, Qatar-based broadcaster beIN Sports said Saudi Arabia should be held accountable for its involvement in a pirated network that illegally broadcasts Premier League matches.

The station’s intervention follows concerns raised by Amnesty International, which wrote to the league’s executive director, Richard Masters, to tell him that Saudi Arabia could use it to cover up “actions that are deeply immoral,” including its record of human rights.

The Premier League was among a number of organizations and governing bodies that called on Saudi Arabia’s state satellite operator Arabsat to stop providing a platform for a pirated network that they said was “abuse” of the sport.

The network, known as beoutQ, began broadcasting sporting events illegally in 2017, and despite repeated attempts by sport’s governing bodies and rights holders to stop it, piracy has continued.

Mike Ashley is looking to sell Newcastle (Kirsty O’Connor / PA)

Last July, the Premier League said it had spoken to nine law firms in Saudi Arabia that either refused to act or refused themselves when asked about filing a copyright complaint against beoutQ.

Yousef Al-Obaidly, executive director of beIN, has written to the presidents of Premier League clubs saying that “the potential acquirer of Newcastle United (ha)” has caused great damage to the business income of his club and the Premier League “.

The consortium involves the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammad bin Salman (Victoria Jones / PA)“/>

Al-Obaidly, who is on the Paris Saint-Germain board, added: “The legacy of the illegal service will continue to impact the future.

“When the Premier League season begins again in the coming months, all content on the league’s broadcasters will continue to be available immediately and illegally through the IPTV streaming functionality on the beoutQ set-top boxes that were sold on significant amounts in Saudi Arabia Arabia and the broader MENA region (Middle East and North Africa).

“Also, given the crippling economic effect coronavirus is having on the sports industry, this is all happening at a time when football clubs need to further protect their broadcast revenue.”

In a separate letter to Masters, Al-Obaidly is asking the League to apply the Owners and Directors Test, taking into account “Saudi Arabia’s direct role in launching, promoting and operating the beoutQ service” and “challenging the The Premier League has fought and will continue to fight by taking any steps to protect its own intellectual property rights in the country. ”

Qatar and Saudi Arabia have been involved in a political dispute since 2017.