A failed attempt to buy Liverpool was the catalyst for Amanda Staveley ending up as Newcastle United co-owner.
The 51-year-old’s time on Tyneside has just come to an end, with Amanda Staveley selling her shares in Newcastle United after less than three years.
Staveley was part of the consortium that bought Newcastle United from Mike Ashley in October 2021, alongside PIF and the Reuben brothers.
She had worked tirelessly to wrestle the Magpies away from Ashley’s control, and ended up doing so much for the club during her time at St James’ Park. Staveley’s departure shocked Eddie Howe, while Newcastle fans have paid tribute to the work she and her husband did.
Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi have been pivotal in getting the club to where it is today, and their Newcastle United journey started well before PIF got involved in 2020.
Amanda Staveley recounts her first visit to St James’ Park
Before Staveley teamed up with PIF, she tried to buy Newcastle United on her own. That came in 2017, after a visit to St James’ Park that year to watch Rafa Benitez’s Magpies take on Liverpool.
In an interview with the Athletic, Staveley has recounted that visit to the North East, and shared the real reason why she agreed to watch Newcastle United vs Liverpool on October 1st 2017.
“I remember walking up to St James’ and it was just immediate,” she said.
“I started to get goosebumps. It was the vibrancy, seeing the town. The people were so warm and friendly and you just felt like you were at home. There was a crazy feeling of, ‘Wow, this place is special’.
“I’ve joked about this to John (Henry) and Tom (Werner, the Liverpool owners), we kind of went there to p— them off because we had been trying to buy Liverpool and we couldn’t get it!
“But when we arrived there was just an immediate feeling of so much potential. I loved the stadium, this big cathedral on the hill, and it was so full and so passionate. It needed love and investment, but you could feel the excitement. I just thought, ‘There’s so much you could do’.”
Amanda Staveley tried to buy Liverpool before Newcastle United
Before trying to buy Newcastle, Staveley had been involved in the deal that saw Sheikh Mansour purchase Manchester City. They have gone on to become one of the best teams in the world, all thanks to a takeover that Staveley helped broker.
After that, Staveley tried to make a move for Liverpool in 2015, backed by Chinese investors.
Of course, Staveley was unable to do a deal for the Reds, and eventually turned her attention from the North West to the North East.
Even getting a deal done for Newcastle United took time, with four years separating that first visit to St James’ Park and her becoming one of the Magpies’ co-owners.
It was quite the journey, but one that Staveley will not regret. Under her stewardship, Newcastle United made it back into the Champions League, and are now primed for success in the coming years.
But it is success that will not include Staveley. She believes that Newcastle is in safe hands with PIF and the Reuben brothers, as they lead the club into the future without the woman who brought them all together.
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