Proposed bill change would force out Man City and Newcastle owners

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Lord Bassam, a Labour politician in Britain's House of Lords, has proposed banning club states from the Premier League. The Times reports that he has little support, but his idea has put Manchester City and Newcastle on notice that they would be affected in the hypothetical case that the initiative goes ahead. It would tarnish bilateral relations between the UK and the Middle East. Hence much of its limited trajectory.

9 hours ago
A Labour politician has tabled a bill to change English football reform and add a ban on state-owned clubs in the Premier League, which would force Manchester City and Newcastle United to change ownership. The Sky Blues are in the hands of the United Arab Emirates, while Newcastle United is owned by the Saudi Arabian Investment Fund (PIF), so if this addition goes ahead, both would have to change ownership.
To do so, Labour would have to win the support of a majority of MPs in the House of Lords, as well as the approval of the British government itself. According to the British newspaper ‘The Times’, the likelihood of this is slim, but it points out that several Premiership clubs have insisted that this rule be introduced.
"No club state should be given an operating licence and every club affected must comply with the reforms in the new law," said Lord Bassam, the politician in question, in his proposed law. The likelihood of this going ahead is also small because it would also mean meddling in trade relations between the UK and the aforementioned countries, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, something that the reform also seeks to amend by ensuring that the independent regulator does not have to take UK trade policies into account when making decisions.
The purchase of City by the United Arab Emirates in 2008 was a great success, as the Sky Blues went from being a mid-table team to winning eight Premier Leagues and a Champions League, as well as numerous other titles and being one of the most valuable clubs in the world. In the case of Newcastle, owned by Saudi Arabia from the end of 2021, the Magpies have gone from fighting relegation to qualifying for the Champions League in 2023 and playing in a League Cup final in the same year.
The reform of English football is a law that is already in the process of being approved by the British Parliament and which came into being following the incidents that took place in the spring of 2021 with the creation of the European Super League. One of the proposals of the reform is the creation of an independent regulator to financially supervise club owners, among other things, and to issue licences to clubs to be able to participate in competitions. If Labour's proposal goes through, state clubs such as City and Newcastle will not receive such a licence and will therefore not be able to compete.

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