Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi are on their way out of Newcastle United.
There has already been one major change behind the scenes at St James’ Park this summer, with Paul Mitchell arriving to become sporting director. Now there is set to be another change at Newcastle United, and it has come completely out of the blue.
Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi have a 5.7% stake in Newcastle United, but their shares are set to be sold as they prepare to leave St James’ Park.
The news was broke by The Sun on Wednesday, as they reported that Staveley would be stepping back from her role on Tyneside. The story has also been reported by various other outlets, as one strand of the Newcastle United ownership prepares to wave goodbye.
Amanda Staveley has been a key figure at Newcastle United
Staveley is a director at Newcastle United, and has been since the Saudi-backed takeover in October 2021.
PCP Capital Partners bought 10% of the club from Mike Ashley, with Jamie Reuben also purchasing 10%. The other 80% went to PIF, who are the main decision makers at St James’ Park.
However, Staveley and her husband Ghodoussi have been involved with the day-to-day running of the club, and have played a key role in getting Newcastle to where they are today.
It recently emerged that Staveley had actually reduced her stake in the club, selling 4.3% of it to Jamie Reuben.
Now all of her shares are set to be sold, with either one of or both PIF and the Reubens buying her out.
Fans react as Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi prepare to leave Newcastle United
While the news has come completely out of the blue and shocked Toon fans, it actually is not the biggest surprise in the world. In fact, it is a move that could help the club in the long run, despite sentimental attachment to Staveley and Ghodoussi for what they have done for the club.
That is the view of a lot of Newcastle United supporters, who have reacted to reports about Staveley and Ghodoussi leaving on X (formally known as Twitter).
For one fan, the fact that Staveley was reducing her stake was a big indicator that this news was on the horizon.
They wrote on X: “With her stake slowly being diluted, this isn’t really a surprise – especially after the Mitchell announcement came directly to the local folk at the club from PIF. The transition phase is done, time for the next phase to begin. I suspect things will start to move fast.”
Another supporter echoed that sentiment, commenting: “Not a surprise. Staveley and co were inexperienced but essentially as brokers did what they needed to do. The PIF will need people on the board with a proven track record.”
“Sounds like it was always part of the plan for Staveley and Ghodoussi to step aside, without them we wouldn’t have have a takeover, so grateful for what they’ve done,” wrote another, who paid tribute to what the couple have done on Tyneside.
“A massive thank you as without them Ashley would still be at the club and we wouldn’t have had the experiences with champions league football and a cup final. This was always inevitable but any future success that the club have the fans need to look back at them both,” tweeted another member of the Toon Army.
A fifth Newcastle fan commented on the situation, accepting that this was always going to happen. They wrote: “Always been their plan, they’re specialists in making deals happen. Slowly sold their shares over past year. They’ve brought in a full new board which should be able to run the club, had a fantastic three years and transformed the men’s and women’s team. Fair play.”
Finally, this supporter believes Staveley deserves credit for what she did before the takeover, commenting: “Staveley is one of the most important people ever to be involved in the club. From 2017 to 2021 she persevered and we’ve reaped the rewards. This should always be recognised.”
Newcastle fans will always remember what Staveley did for the club
While a move away from Newcastle United was always likely, that should not play down Staveley and Ghodoussi’s importance to the club.
They were on everyone’s radar before the takeover went through, trying to buy the club from Mike Ashley when all hope was lost. They were inspired to move for the club after seeing a game at St James’ Park, and fought for years to make it happen.
Staveley could not do it on her own. She eventually struck a deal with PIF and Jamie Reuben, who had the financial muscle required to buyout Mike Ashley. Even that was a saga in itself, and one that the couple fought for.
Eventually a deal went through, and life has changed on Tyneside. Under their stewardship came a sense of belief. They got what it meant to be a Newcastle United fan, and helped build an atmosphere that was a millions miles away from the toxicity of the Ashley era.
A Wembley final, Champions League football – it was all made possible by Staveley and Ghodoussi.
There will likely be even greater highs in their absence, but they are highs that will not be possible without their work and dedication.
Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi – thank you for everything.
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