Premier League football: copyright spat derails Saudi ambitions
(WorldNews Spain)

For months, Saudi columnists agreed that a bid by their country`s sovereign wealth fund, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), to buy Newcastle United, an English Premier League football team, was a big win, a safe investment, a visionary decision by `the leadership`. `Some three billion people follow the Premier League across the world. Its games are broadcast to 188 countries,` wrote Saudi columnist Bader bin Saud in Al-Riyadh Daily. `The acquisition will be an effective soft power that will help Saudi Arabia both politically and to compete for the exclusive rights to air the Premier League`.[*] PIF led a consortium with PCP Capital Partners and Reuben Brothers that offered nearly $400m...