Will the Saudi Consortium

[Charlieblade]

Any individual or company who buys a controlling interest in the club for 2-300m will expect exercise control over the club and its employees.
Right now there is a winning and happy triumvirate in charge, and it works well. Wilder gets to change anything below board level. The Prince oversees all off field issues, and gives Wilder the financial support necessary to run the team and the footballing side of things.
Stephen Bettie is the link between Wilder and the Prince and his board.
It all works very well.
Any serious investor may want to choose his own team, and either replace Wilder, or get more involved in team affairs, employ a director of football etc.
No other club works the Wilder way.
New money would change that.
Saudi Arabia or corporate business, the end result would be the same.
Can’t see it happening, unless the Prince wants to jack it all in and take the money.

 

[nopigfansintown]

No they aren't killing the workers, they're just working them to the point where they pass out whilst on the machinery.

So not paying them what they should really be getting paid because if they did there's "no point in them being there" is completely fine then? You can't say you aren't a capitalist then say the above. That's exploitation.

It's a nonsense argument anyway. Capitalism depends on somebody to produce the goods, somebody to sell them and somebody to buy them. These

Let’s hope they don’t turn their attention to us. We might as well be connected to known terrorists.

Such as?

 

[Blade56]

I sincerely hope not. It's dirty money.

Take ‘dirty money‘ out of the PL and it would probably implode. Handley an owner that has a history someone would be offended by. In fact it’s contagion down through to the championship, look at the dodgy deals with Birmingham, Pigs, Derby etc. Sky pumped up the monetary volume of football and inevitably money attracts money and corruption. Look at Pigs with their owners reportedly chaining workers to work benches, slaughtering dolphins in pursuit of profit. What if McCabe had sold out to China, we would be reyt popular now.

I have no problem with our owner. He's a human being who was born in Saudi Arabia, he's not representing his state, he's representing himself.

Well said, as I keep repeating on the BLM issues I will nor take responsibility or be judge for the sins of my forefathers.

 

[tincan]

I guess you may have to point out the link between that and killing Yemeni children, killing journalists in embassies and killing persons apposed to the brutal Saudi Regime. That's before you get to the beheadings and chopping off of hands which the money from a state would be trying to hide. I don't wear Nike Adidas or shop at Primark but if I thought any of them did the atrocities that the Saudi State did I would call them out as well.

And of course the tools they use to commit the atrocities are made in the UK and sold by companies such as BAE systems to KSA. BAE employ 21000 throughout Britain to produce them. Its noticeable that with the abhorrence of that regime the fact the UK is continuing to sell to KSA is overlooked :. https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...e-of-arms-to-saudi-arabia-despite-yemen-fears.

 

[Blade-on-Tyne]

Well Saudis do like a good sword, so maybe they've seen the swords on the badge and are like "we'll have a bit of that".

Wasn’t it for that very reason that the logo was changed when some Iraqi “businessman” was thinking of investing in the club ?
Fearsome crossed swords look more attractive to Arabs than sheaves of corn and crossed arrows.

 

[Ricardo Mantelban]

It's a nonsense argument anyway. Capitalism depends on somebody to produce the goods, somebody to sell them and somebody to buy them. These


Such as?

Notice the word “connected “ which I believe the Bin Laden family are. I know this subject has been done to death, just throwing in a bit of click bait.

 

[nopigfansintown]

Notice the word “connected “ which I believe the Bin Laden family are. I know this subject has been done to death, just throwing in a bit of click bait.

Osama Bin Laden had been dead for over a decade before the Prince had any contact with family members he'd been estranged from for many years. Happy to clear that up for you.

 

[Kev Gee]

What point are you trying to make?

When making purchases, I always try to be mindful of what happens in the supply chain. I dont buy clothes made in sweat-shops, I don't buy products made with palm oil etc.
Unfortunately, my smartphone and car likely both contain conflict minerals - I wish that could be avoided.

What relevance does any of the above have to do with supporting investment from the Saudi state?

You said its dirty money. I said most money is dirty. That's the relevance.

 

[Darthblade]

I don't do politics or religion. As far as I'm concerned most people in power have dirty linen and they certainly all piss in the same pot - it's just that some pots are smellier than others............ whether that is driving 60 miles to test your eyesight, or 'silencing' opponents.

I just drink beer, eat curry and follow the Blades.

A sound decision ..... religion and politics are absolutely guaranteed to cause arguments and often frothing at the mouth reactions

I think that we are well "guided" by the administrators, to keep politics out of football discussion

UTB & FTP

 

[Ricardo Mantelban]

Osama Bin Laden had been dead for over a decade before the Prince had any contact with family members he'd been estranged from for many years. Happy to clear that up for you.

Still connected though. More so than the family name Smith. Seem to remember quite a few people up in arms about the news when it came out. Don’t want to get drawn into a separate discussion, I bow to your greater knowledge.

 

[Kev Gee]

Fuck it. Let's have some dirty wonga. About £300m will do nicely thank you. I don't care anymore. If you can't beat em... etc

Yeah and whilst were at it let's get the money from those cunty Shias that are going around over throwing elected govts with their proxy's. Then we can be proper dirty.

 

[Darthblade]

All money is dirty and comes from one form of human exploitation or another .Objectively speaking, Saudi money is no different to any other. This western exceptionalism is nauseating tbh. The only way you can substantially clean football up is to get the big money out of the game. Good luck with that!

I've advocated for years that we should have a transfer cap and a wages cap in UK football and stuff the rest of the world.

This would "level the playing field" somewhat and the only downside to the UK game would be the lack of competitiveness in European football competitions, for the same few Clubs.

It would give young British talent a far better chance in the game and we wouldn't be slaves to Sky TV.

I'm not holding my breath though .........

UTB & FTP

 

[JohnDenver]

Ball_Sup (Phil) wrote better about this than most. Get yer Dem Blades back catalogue out and have a read.

 

[Ball_Sup (Phil)]

Ball_Sup (Phil) wrote better about this than most. Get yer Dem Blades back catalogue out and have a read.

Thanks JohnDenver
Here's another link to my piece on Saudi money at my Club.

http://ball-sup.blogspot.com/2020/04/the-house-of-saud-fc.html

 

[ATL Recs]

I sincerely hope not. It's dirty money.

As much as the prospect of Wilder with money to spend is exciting, let's not do it at the expense of our conscience.

If we become owned by a state, we'll become heavily associated with them and become a mouthpiece to gain soft power and launder their shoddy reputation.

Unless you condone the indiscriminate bombing of Yemeni civilians, the murdering of political opponents/critics or turning a blind eye to human trafficking, slavery and torture, then you should be against any Saudi money too.

LEEDS IT IS THEN!

 

[Jon Bon II]

Yeah and whilst were at it let's get the money from those cunty Shias that are going around over throwing elected govts with their proxy's. Then we can be proper dirty.

Nah, I was only joshing. Let's get back to slugging it out with the likes of Burton and Swindon in the pub league with just two ha'pennys to rub together. I really miss the buzz of deadline day, not knowing if we'd be selling our best players or not.

Bah, money - schmoney.....

 

[Kanye]

Whilst wanting to remain very much outside of the political debate about Saudi Arabia and how 'dirty' their money is, I don't really understand how you can support one member of the ruling family, who had an excellent start in life and a lot of privilege purely because of the dynasty he was born into, whilst simultaneously repudiating the validity or 'cleanliness' of the very family that spawned him - and whom, to the best of my knowledge, he hasn't excommunicated himself from. Unless of course it's because he's the owner and benefactor of the football team you support, but that would surely be rank hypocrisy?

Well I'm not exactly chuffed that we indirectly benefit from Saudi money in the channels that you describe, however the issue about being state owned, rather than privately owned is the key distinction.

The prince is a human being, we can argue about his privilege and whether or not you think he deserves his personal wealth. At the end of the day though, he represents himself, not his nation, and the money he invests is his own. I don't know him personally, and it would be unfair of me to comment on his character or morality.

The actions of the Saudi Arabia as a state are well documented, and their morality is far less ambiguous. Hence the distinction.

 

[Kanye]

Take ‘dirty money‘ out of the PL and it would probably implode. Handley an owner that has a history someone would be offended by. In fact it’s contagion down through to the championship, look at the dodgy deals with Birmingham, Pigs, Derby etc. Sky pumped up the monetary volume of football and inevitably money attracts money and corruption. Look at Pigs with their owners reportedly chaining workers to work benches, slaughtering dolphins in pursuit of profit. What if McCabe had sold out to China, we would be reyt popular now.

I acknowledge their are plenty of dodgy owners. I doubt their are any owners who have as much blood on their hands as the Saudi regime though.

It's a sliding scale with the Saudi government being firmly at one end of said scale.

 

[Kanye]

You said its dirty money. I said most money is dirty. That's the relevance.

I really don't understand.

Are you saying that because "most money is dirty" (which is a pretty vague and baseless thing to say) we shouldn't care who owns the club?

 

[Kanye]

LEEDS IT IS THEN!

Huh?

 

[nopigfansintown]

I've advocated for years that we should have a transfer cap and a wages cap in UK football and stuff the rest of the world.

This would "level the playing field" somewhat and the only downside to the UK game would be the lack of competitiveness in European football competitions, for the same few Clubs.

It would give young British talent a far better chance in the game and we wouldn't be slaves to Sky TV.

I'm not holding my breath though .........

UTB & FTP

Me too. The argument you make has zero hypocrisy or western exceptionalism and is one I can agree with 100%. The only other argument I can see against it is people will say we wont get to see the better players in the world. It's a small price to pay imo.

 

[Westran]

Messaged my newcastle supporting mate and put the moral dilemma aspect to him, he's quite Liberal and left wing too. Got this response:

"I’d take the money and trophies and run mate. Let others worry about politics while I’m in the nou camp!"

 

[SuperSonicBlade89]

Some people just see the £££ and not the ethics behind it.
Would you really want your club to be owned by Saudi Arabia? I certainly don't.

 

[Houston_Blade]

I’m not bothered about the ethics really, most football club owners are from despotic and antiquated regimes, that’s where the money is.

I just don’t like Saudis due to the strife they put on Qatar when I was living there. Made a 45 minute hop to Dubai turn into a 5 hour experience amongst other things. Although it did mean there were less of the arrogant and hypocritical Saudis in Qatar which was a positive.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Unless you've been living under a stone, the story that's associated with the Prince points to his involvement in the murder of a fellow Saudi.

Of course there's no way of confirming one way or another, but if intuition counts for anything then bang the bugger up for a very long time.
Surely there's a point when you say 'enough is enough'. Of course I'd love our manager to have untold wealth to tap into, but at what price? Isn't there a moment when the idea of 'values' actually has a way of bringing together a collective opinion that won't tolerate the type of behaviour that should be intolerable to most of us?

I hope the Saudi state, under it's current guise, is never allowed into any UK industry, it would be embarrassing and would violate the concept of what matters in life.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Daft OP was obviously going to become political despite the ban.

 

[Blackheath Blade]

The word "consortium" when linked to the ownership of a football club fills me with dread when I hear it.

Some of you will likely correct me but I cant honestly recall a successful outcome where a consortium has taken over a club. They've all seemed to go badly wrong, to the detriment of the club, it's staff and players and ultimately the supporters.

The various bodies who run football in England and Scotland should take a stance on this and ban club ownership by consortiums because it always seems to offer false hope to the club, yet ends in tears as at Newcastle United. I hope to god this never happens at Bramall Lane.

 

[Blackheath Blade]

After the failed bid for Newcastle turn their attention to us as it’s stated they may turn their attention to another premier league club

after all the Prince is related to the power behind them

just a thought

I sincerely hope not

 

[diode_blade]

What these countries are going through now is the same as the UK during the industrial revolution, we made cheap cotton, and wool, had children working down pits, in the factories, being killed and maimed, in ten years time it might be another country that has underpriced the current ones of cheap mass produced goods.
When the steam engine came in to power factories etc thousands of people lost their jobs, we had riots etc people being killed in demonstrations etc, murdered etc, it will happen again, and it will happen those countries.
In the late 60's, early 70's and early 80's it was Taiwan and Japan that made most stuff, every toy use to have made in Taiwan, most tronics made in Japan, now it's China or India, Japan still strong in tronics but not as much these days.

 

[bertieblade]

Still connected though. More so than the family name Smith. Seem to remember quite a few people up in arms about the news when it came out. Don’t want to get drawn into a separate discussion, I bow to your greater knowledge.

Let’s not have anyone called Kray, some distant relative used to be a gangster in London and there were two of them.
Some of the arguments on here are beyond the realms of common sense.