Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Al Mayadeen’s correspondent in southern Lebanon: One killed in an Israeli drone strike targeting the town of Houla
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: An Israeli force of five vehicles is advancing towards Saraya Rasem al-Halabi in the central Quneitra countryside, southern Syria
Baghaei to Al Mayadeen: The core of these factions is the Israeli occupation entity, which seeks to keep the region in a state of continuous war
Al-Qassam Brigades: Resistance fighters inflicted casualties on Israeli forces and closely monitored helicopter evacuation operations
Al-Qassam Brigades: Resistance fighters targeted three Israeli vehicles using two Shawaz explosive devices and a tandem RPG, before confronting another Israeli force
Al Mayadeen's correspondent in Gaza: Five martyrs reported in the Israeli bombing of al-Hasayna School in al-Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip
Baqaei to Al Mayadeen: It is clear to any observer that US lawmakers are increasingly influenced by factions opposed to diplomacy
Baqaei to Al Mayadeen: We believe that a strong region consists of strong, reconciled, and united countries; based on this, we extend our hand to all our neighbors
Baqaei to Al Mayadeen: Iran considers its neighbors highly important, with regional security remaining a strategic priority
Baqaei to Al Mayadeen: US' insistence on completely halting Iran’s uranium enrichment raises questions about their true intentions

Saudi "Sportswashing" continues with $1B Inter Milan takeover

  • By Al Mayadeen Net
  • Source: Agencies
  • 1 Jan 2022 13:18
3 Min Read

Saudi Arabia is close to a possible takeover of Italy's Serie A giant, Inter Milan, marking its second takeover after Newcastle.

  • x
  • The KSA's Public Investment Fund is using sportswashing to divert attention away from the Kingdom's human rights abuses
    The KSA's Public Investment Fund is using sportswashing to divert attention away from the Kingdom's human rights abuses

Saudi Arabia is currently finalizing preparations for a deal to acquire Italian football giant Inter Milan. The Kingdom's Public Investment Fund (PIF) has been given the okay to acquire the football team, thereby increasing Saudi investments in the sports world.

The Chinese owners of the club, Suning Holdings, are currently bleeding money and have thus began to search for investors to recoup their losses. It's been recently announced that Saudi Arabia will be the party to acquire the club, and that the deal will be completed by next week.

The Saudi acquisition of Inter Milan marks the second acquisition by the PIF after the UK Premier League's Newcastle United in October 2021. 

Inter Milan, under its current management, was losing close to $15 million per month, forcing it to sell two of its best players, Romelu Lukaku and Achraf Hakimi, which allowed the Suning group to recoup $150 million.

Related News

Dozens of activists arrested after halting Newcastle coal train

Premier League clubs react to Newcastle ownership twist in dismay

Critics of the move, however, say that these acquisitions are intended to shift attention away from the Kingdom's human rights abuses, which has been dubbed "sportswashing". Amnesty International, for example, had called on the Premier League to make changes to its owners' and directors' test by adding a section that addresses "human rights issues."

The Newcastle takeover was also condemned by slain journalist Jamal Khashoggi's fiancée, who said the £300 million ($408 million) takeover deal was "heartbreaking" and disappointing for her and that it was “a real shame for Newcastle and for English football” that the club was now “owned by the person responsible for the murder of Jamal” in reference to Saudi Arabia's crown prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman. 

Khashoggi's murderers living in luxury villas

A source close to Saudi intelligence has divulged that the Saudi hit squad convicted of killing Jamal Khashoggi are actually enjoying their freedom comfortably in "seven-star" establishments inside a government-funded compound in Riyadh.

The assassins are reportedly living in residential complexes with access to gyms and workstations, frequently visited by family. The compounds are operated by Saudi Arabia's State Security agency, far from the country's notorious prisons. According to the source, two witnesses claim to have seen the men.

The murderers were sentenced in a Saudi court in a trial widely regarded as a farce, where only one, Salah al-Tubaigy, was identified. Some were sentenced to death, but their convictions were eventually reduced to life terms.

Tubaigy, a forensic scientist who dismembered Khashoggi inside the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, was among those spotted inside the premises, according to the source. Mustafa Al-Madani, the body duplicate sent by the hit squad team to create the deception that Khashoggi left the consulate alive, has also been sighted, as has Mansour Abahussein, the operation's leader.

  • Inter Milan
  • Newcastle United
  • Jamal Khashoggi
  • Khashoggi murder
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Sportswashing

Most Read

Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

Gaza and the logic of necropolitics: Sovereignty measured by killing

  • Politics
  • 15 May 2025
Two F-35 jets arrive at it's new operational base Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2015, at Hill Air Force Base, in northern Utah. (AP)

F-35 near-misses over Yemen signal new risks for 'Israel': Forbes

  • Politics
  • 14 May 2025
Abu Obaida

Abu Obeida posts shortly after Israeli reports about his assassination

  • Palestine
  • 15 May 2025
YAF say struck 'Israel's' Ben-Gurion Airport with missiles, drones

YAF say struck 'Israel's' Ben Gurion Airport with missiles, drones

  • MENA
  • 18 May 2025

Coverage

All
Gaza prevails against genocide

Read Next

All
Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer (right) poses with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the UK-EU Summit at Lancaster House in London on May 19, 2025. (Pool/AFP)
US & Canada

UK, EU reset post-Brexit relations with defense and trade pact

Vice President JD Vance, right, and his wife Usha attend Pope Leo XIV's formal inauguration of his pontificate in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican, May 18, 2025 (Alessandra Tarantino/AP)
US & Canada

Axios: Vance scraps 'Israel' visit over new operation in Gaza

''Israel' resumed Gaza aid', says Netanyahu amid full invasion calls
Politics

Netanyahu: We are going to take over all of Gaza

Telegram co-founder Pavel Durov, center, after a meeting, Jakarta, Indonesia on August 1, 2017 (AP Photo/Tatan Syuflana)
Europe

Telegram’s Durov says France sought to censor Romanian conservatives

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS