What’s changed since Newcastle takeover?

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Eddie Howe’s voice sounded sluggish.

The Newcastle United head coach said last week, “I can remember walking around the training ground when we first arrived.” “It was…”

After his appointment nearly four years ago, Howe was not just suddenly becoming irritable, but rather reflecting on the work that needed to be done to rejuvenate the club’s worn-out Benton base.

A Saudi-led consortium had recently purchased Newcastle in a £305 million deal, which the human rights movement opposed.

The club had been dubbed the richest in the world by outsiders, but the reality on the ground was rather different as they battled relegation.

The training facility was even described as “significantly below the Premier League and perhaps even Championship standards” in a planning application filed a few months later.

The team has since been truly transformed, with the addition of hydrotherapy and plunge pools, a new canteen, a players’ lounge, and bigger dressing rooms, among other things.

“We need more, but things will change,” the statement read.

It was spotted by Matt Ritchie.

He knew what could happen if Howe “got hold of them” and “had some firepower”, after previously working with the manager at Bournemouth.

The 36-year-old winger, who played for Newcastle between 2016 and 2024 and is currently a member of Reading, said, “When I first arrived, I would talk about Eddie Howe and Bournemouth.

“He can’t have been that good,” the boys would say. But I’d tell them there was no stone left unturned.

I was pleased that they had the opportunity to try it. You don’t really believe you’ve never worked like that before until you actually experience it and feel it. It’s the attention to detail, the preparation and the desire to improve – all the things that make Newcastle what they are now. “

Naturally, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing since Howe’s appointment or the takeover a few weeks ago.

During a sluggish summer, Newcastle, which is currently 15th in the Premier League, missed out on a number of targets and traded striker Alexander Isak to Liverpool for a record sum of £125 million.

The club do not have a sporting director after Paul Mitchell left in June, following less than a year in the post.

And it’s still awaited news of plans to build a brand-new, state-of-the-art training facility and the future of St. James’ Park.

However, this team won the Carabao Cup by beating Liverpool in a 70-year drought to bring back a significant domestic trophy in March.

They have qualified for the Champions League in two of the past three seasons – recording their biggest win in the competition against Union Saint-Gilloise this week – and only Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal have picked up more points in the Premier League since Howe took charge.

“The general vibe of the club has changed a lot,” added Howe. The team has obviously changed. Naturally, teams progress and change over time.

“The way we operate as a football club behind the scenes is completely different, but there have been significant improvements,” says one player. That is what the club required and still requires.

attempting to close a significant revenue gap

Newcastle have also grown off the field.

When the club’s most recent accounts are released later this year, revenue will increase from £140 million to upwards of £400 million, and staff numbers will increase to 550 in recent years.

The academy and the women’s team have received significant funding, and hundreds of millions have been put into the club to cover operating expenses.

But one question outsiders might be asking is why the wealth of their Saudi owners hasn’t produced greater success.

Although there have been some new signings recently, as Charlotte Robson noted, this has been a comparatively gradual increase, as supporters have noted.

On paper, many people assumed the new owners would buy the way to the top because the new owners were so wealthy, according to BBC Sport’s Newcastle fan writer.

” Yes, Newcastle have brought in some excellent internationals like Bruno Guimaraes and Sandro Tonali, but the development of existing squad players and the signing of players like Dan Burn from the region to bolster that feeling around the club has been massive and really important. “

Finding a way to add headroom will be of utmost importance for Newcastle because profit and sustainability rules (PSR) restrict losses to £105 million over a rolling three-year period have influenced this approach.

For context, Manchester United may have had their worst campaign in more than 40 years last year, but the team still made record profits of £666.5 million.

Digging deeper, Manchester United brought in £333.3m worth of commercial income and £160.3m in matchday revenue.

Buy-out of “higher” rivals’ concerns

Manchester United have not necessarily made the most of their huge income streams, of course.

However, in the Premier League, the teams that spend more money historically average the most points per game.

Prior to the 2013 introduction of the current regulations, rivals like Manchester City and Chelsea were able to blow their own money out of the water with better packages.

But Newcastle ‘ only ‘ had the eighth highest salary bill in the Premier League just a couple of seasons ago and the club came mightily close to a PSR breach in June 2024 following years of imbalanced trading.

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire said, “I’m not necessarily sure these are unintended consequences of the rules.” The top clubs didn’t want another City or Chelsea to emerge, according to the more machiavellian interpretation of the Premier League. This is a way of creating a glass ceiling. “

Newcastle will have to make some adjustments, which have been made since the takeover.

In response to a rumored executive’s concern that Newcastle might negotiate lucrative sponsorship deals with Saudi Arabian businesses, an unnamed executive has already spoken to the Premier League on behalf of his club and ten others.

He requested that notice was given of a vote to introduce a short-term ban on related-party transactions just five days after the buy-out in 2021.

No one should deny the human rights record of Saudi Arabia.

The APT regulations have been updated and remain in place.

However, David Hopkinson, the club’s new CEO, has been looking for ways to unlock its “under-realised commercial potential.”

Close friend Tom Pistore, who worked for the Canadian at Maple Leaf Sports &amp, Entertainment, has not come as a surprise to him.

” Our group under his leadership were always trying to focus on how do we continue to evolve? “He said,” he said. It was about staying creative in business and partnership relationships, innovation, digital, and ticketing because the status quo keeps you stuck.

“As the landscape changed, David was always very forward facing with a curious interest in new concepts. When someone takes their first stab at something and then conducts a proper evaluation, we frequently discussed the terms bleeding edge and bleeding edge.

Newcastle is “among the world’s elite,” according to Hopkinson, who previously held the positions of president and chief operating officer at Madison Square Garden Sports and head of global partnerships at Real Madrid.

That remains the long-term ambition of chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan, the governor of the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund (PIF) – who own a majority stake in the club – as well as fellow owner Jamie Reuben.

After a record 345 people were executed in Saudi Arabia last year, Felix Jakens, Amnesty International UK’s head of campaigns, said “goals and glory distract from executions and repression.”

He continued, “This was never just about football.” “It’s about using the global prestige of the Premier League to sanitise a brutal human rights record”.

Chi Onwurah, the first Newcastle Central MP to acknowledge that she “wouldn’t choose Saudi Arabia to own the club.”

She emphasized that supporters were the “last people who had the freedom to choose.”

“When you make it all about money, which the Premier League have, those with the most money will end up winning the great clubs like Newcastle United”, she said.

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Pereira stops Ankalaev to reclaim light-heavyweight title

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After eviscribing Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 320 in Las Vegas, Alex Pereira was only able to win the light-heavyweight title in a minute and 22 seconds.

Seven months prior to the Brazilian’s unanimous decision to defeat the Russian at UFC 313, he won.

Pereira, 38, wasted no time by connecting with a massive right hook after suffering a devastating defeat in March.

Before referee Herb Dean stopped the fight after a number of violent elbows to the head, the 33-year-old was stunned by the two-division champion’s striking right.

“Vengeance is never a good thing,” says the saying. No one believed what I said to everyone last time that I wasn’t in a good position, but tonight you saw it, Pereira said after winning.

I saw it in the first fight, so it didn’t surprise me. I don’t like to make excuses, but that night I wasn’t well.

Ankalaev was hoping to get his 13th win in a row, but only two of his seven notable strikes were successful for 25 of Pereira’s 37.

Pereira has quickly grown to become one of the promotion’s biggest stars, winning two division titles in just seven fights, a record-breaking feat since making his UFC debut in 2021.

Pereira moved up to light-heavyweight after claiming gold in his three fights in 2024, earning him the title of UFC fighter of the year along with Ilia Topuria.

Pereira had to put up his biggest test in the first fight against Ankalaev because the Russian had prevented the Brazilian from striking his massive strikes. However, Pereira did not have to worry the second time around, when he thudded the side of his opponent’s head head head head first.

Ankalaev ended the Brazilian’s three-year winning streak in the first encounter, but the former champion has now suffered a second defeat, his first since March 2018.

Alex Pereira punching Magomed Ankalaev while on top of himImages courtesy of Getty
Alex Pereira celebrating with Magomed Ankalaev on the canvas Images courtesy of Getty

Pereira ‘wants to fight at heavyweight’ – White

Pereira has plans to move up another weight class to heavyweight, according to UFC welterweight champion Dana White, despite reclaiming the light-heavyweight title he lost in March.

Pereira and his team informed White of his desire to switch to heavyweight before the rematch with Ankalaev. They claim to want to fight at heavyweight, but White advised that I put the focus on tonight first. We’ll see if there are any fights in this division.

“This guy has been a total stud.” He doesn’t care when he’s hurt, and he fights. He wants to advance to heavyweight and fight everyone. After tonight, there are many topics to discuss.

When asked what Pereira’s views on jumping two weight classes in the UFC were, White responded that “he was a middleweight; to jump up two weight classes in boxing is not like jumping up two weight classes.”

“Machine” Dvalishvili continues to appear in historical works.

Merab Dvalishvili smiling as the referee raises his hand with Cory Sandhagen looking onImages courtesy of Getty

In the co-main event, Georgia’s Merab Dvalishvili won the bantamweight world title matchup unanimously over Cory Sandhagen from the USA.

The Georgian won 14 straight games, placing him third in UFC history with the longest win streak. Anderson Silva sits higher than Islam Makhachev and Kamaru Usman, respectively, at 15 years old.

The judges scored the fight 49-45 49-45 49-46 in favour of the champion.

I operate like a machine. I never stop improving. I put in a lot of effort. After the fight, Dvalishvili said, “I feel like I’m just beginning, I’m just starting and I keep learning.”

Dvalishvili, 34, had Sandhagen on the defense throughout the entirety of the fight.

In the opening round, Dvalishvili was not overawed and landed 23 of his 48 significant strikes, but a flurry of strikes from the Georgian made the situation worse when the game ended in the second round.

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UFC 320: Pereira stuns Ankalaev with TKO to regain light heavyweight title

With a first-round technical knockout (TKO) of the highly favored Magomed Ankalaev in Las Vegas, Alex Pereira reclaimed his undisputed light heavyweight title and made amends for his Russian defeat seven months prior, making it a boilover at Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 320.

After dropping the 33-year-old champion with a massive right hook less than a minute into the T-Mobile Arena match, Pereira only managed one minute and 20 seconds to defeat Ankalaev.

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Before the match referee called off the match, the Brazilian then slammed the opponent with a flurry of punches and elbows.

Ankalaev, who had never lost a UFC match, made his promotional debut at a UFC Fight Night in March 2018 and made his comeback with a 14-match unbeaten streak.

Pereira was the undisputed underdog before the match, with Ankalaev receiving 89 percent of the BetMGM fight bets.

Ankalaev (20-2-1, 12-2-1 UFC) had already beaten Pereira (13-3, 10-2 UFC) in their first bout at UFC 313 on March 8. Pereira claimed that because of injury, he only fought 40 percent of his best combat skills.

With his victory, Pereira has won the UFC light heavyweight title twice.

The 38-year-old’s victory gives the division’s light heavyweight title a second chance, taking the belt from Ankalaev, who had little to offer hope for the division’s future. It opened the door for a third bout against Pereira for the belt with Jiri Prochazka also winning his bout by stunning knockout.

[Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images via AFP] Pereira, right, punches Magomed Ankalaev in the first round just before the match referee stopped the fight.

In their five-round fight, Merab Dvalishvili (21-4-0) defeated Cory Sandhagen (18-6-0) to defend his undisputed bantamweight title.

The three judges scored it for Dvalishvili: 49-45, 49-45 and 49-46.

Prochazka (32-5-1) and Khalil Rountree Jr. (135-7-0) fought it out for the most points in the main card’s most anticipated match. With two minutes left, the Czech fighter landed a devastating combination that instantly knocked out Rountree with a loss in the balance late in the third.

In the first round, which saw Prochazka clearly stumbling into the second, Rountree seized control by landing a number of high-calibre combinations in the first. Prochazka had a window with his third-round explosion, but the exchanges also made Rountree tired.

Jiri Prochazka and Khalil Rountree in action.
In a light-heavyweight fight in UFC 320, Jiri Prochazka of the Czech Republic takes on American Khalil Rountree Jr. [Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images via AFP]

What did we learn from the Rugby Championship?

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The Rugby Championship has been completed for a further year by the southern hemisphere sides.

South Africa won back-to-back titles for the first time when they defeated Argentina at Allianz Stadium in London on Saturday.

The opening four rounds saw the four teams each claim two victories in a thrilling tournament.

Pumas have promise but fall short.

Argentina players celebrate after beating New Zealand in the Rugby Championship in 2025Images courtesy of Getty

An Argentina side that defeated all three of their rivals for the first time in the Rugby Championship last year will be disappointed by two wins out of six.

For the first time since 2022, the Pumas, who entered the competition in 2012, came in at the bottom of the table this year.

Felipe Contepomi’s team’s highlight was a first-ever home victory over New Zealand in round two.

The biggest disappointment will be wasting a 14-point lead over Australia in round three, which they corrected the following week, as another victory would have prevented them from finishing fourth.

Financial advantages come with choosing to play the Springboks’ final home game at Allianz Stadium, but the city’s large, expat community in London gave them a leg.

Losing a two-test series against England in July had already put pressure on the outcome of the campaign.

Argentina, who play an exciting and quick style of rugby, needs to continue pushing forward with a significant result to have a realistic title charge.

With Wallabies on the rise, Schmidt departs.

Joe Schmidt and Scott RobertsonImages courtesy of Getty

Would the Australian tour of the British and Irish Lions be competitive? For the advancing Wallabies, that question has a good age.

After failing to reach the knockout stages of a rugby world cup for the first time in 2023, Joe Schmidt took over at their lowest level.

With victories over South Africa and Argentina, they finished third overall, which is an improvement on their previous two last-place finishes in a row.

With New Zealand playing the Wallabies in their final two matches following a record-loss by South Africa, their campaign forged toward a historic push to reclaim the Bledisloe Cup for the first time since 2002.

However, Schmidt was unable to remove the Bledisloe from the All Blacks, leading to his two-loss reign.

Even so, he succeeds Les Kiss as head coach, who is also in charge.

“I do believe the team is growing, and I can’t say for sure that will be linear, but I can pretty much guarantee that the effort will be there,” he said.

Max Jorgensen, a back-to-back three star, and Joseph Suaalii, a center, are dangerous attackers in tight spaces.

Barrett, a veteran fly-half, is Robertson’s ally.

Beauden Barrett passes Images courtesy of Getty

The All Blacks had won six of their previous seven Rugby Championships before Scott Robertson became the new Zealand head coach.

Robertson’s side fell short of South Africa for the second year in a row.

A positive aspect of Robertson’s use of 43 players this year keeps its November home games with the four home nations.

Leroy Carter made three wing starts, with No. 8 Peter Lakai, 22, making his debut in the black jersey.

Robertson is starting to add significant depth to his World Cup winning streak in 2027 while still defeating South Africa, Australia, and Argentina.

However, the All Blacks’ hopes of winning the title were hampered by their first defeat in Argentina and a shock record-setting defeat by the Springboks, which both proved unfavorable.

As Robertson switched from Damian McKenzie’s regular number 10 last year, Beauden Barrett, 34, started five of the six games at fly-half.

Richie Mo’unga, who won the World Cup final at fly-half two years ago, will have another chance to win.

Barrett, who has 142 caps, would have been in pole position to start the following World Cup, but he isn’t slowing down at the moment.

Erasmus acquires skills and triumphs in battle.

Sacha Feinberg-MngomezuluImages courtesy of Getty

At the World Rugby Awards last year, South Africa was chosen as the men’s team of the year.

The world’s top-ranked team could win the title once more after winning back-to-back Rugby Championships.

The number of players that head coach Rassie Erasmus has used, though, is what makes the achievement even more remarkable.

He said, “I believe we had close to 47 players in our lineup, and I’d like to have given them more chances.”

The pressure was put on Erasmus by Australia and New Zealand’s defeats in the first three games, but the rewards were worth it given by the subsequent results.

Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu, 23, started all three of her victories, earning her the title in three games.

Highlight of Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s record 37 points against Argentina in Durban marked the start of Feinberg-Mngomezulu’s potential ascendancy at fly-half in November.

Canan Moodie, also 23, started outside center in the final three games while Ethan Hooker, 22, started the final three games on the left and produced a standout performance against New Zealand.

With the title in their hands, Erasmus lacked confidence in his young stars.

The Springboks’ World Cup winners’ hopes of playing again, especially in matches against France and Ireland, will now become heated up for the autumn.

Erasmus once said that he would rather win the World Cup than maintain an 85 percent win rate.

He has now created a squad that appears to be capable of both.

He continued, “I believe one of our goals is to stay in the present, perform well, and not just concentrate on the World Cup.”

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