PIF and Newcastle United have been working hard to close the financial gap to their Premier League rivals.
The latest 2023/24 club accounts published this week showed Newcastle United generated £320m in revenue – a whole £70m more than the year prior.
It included an impressive £40m boost to commercial revenue, led by Chief Commercial Officer Peter Silverstone, while matchday income and broadcast revenue also increased significantly.
However, Newcastle are still financially behind their rivals, with Manchester City breaking revenue north of £700million.
It means that under the new squad cost ratio system set to be introduced to the Premier League, Newcastle will have less spending power as spending on wages, transfer fees and agent fees will be locked to 85% of a club’s revenue.
Newcastle could fall even further behind, and it is partly down to the PIF.
Club World Cup prize money will interest Newcastle United
On Thursday morning, it was confirmed that the new format of the Club World Cup will have a prize pool of $1bn (£775million).
That prize money will be distributed between the 32 participating teams, with payouts increasing for those who go further in the competition.
Manchester City and Chelsea are the two English clubs set to participate in the inaugural Club World Cup, which is scheduled to take place this summer between June 14 and July 13 in the United States.
As pointed out by TBR Football, PIF have invested £820m into DAZN, who have struck a lucrative deal to broadcast the Club World Cup.
FIFA were struggling to strike a TV deal that would have provided a big enough prize pool to catch the attention of European giants, but the DAZN deal has contributed significantly to the £775m pot.
Therefore, Newcastle’s Premier League rivals – who are among the favourites to win the competition – are set to benefit financially from a deal struck by their Saudi Arabian owners.
Newcastle United will prioritise qualifying for Club World Cup
Newcastle banked £30m from the Champions League campaign last year, and returning to Europe has been at the forefront of Eddie Howe’s mind.
But the bombshell prize pool announcement of the Club World Cup will catch the attention of club chiefs, and qualifying for the international tournament may now become a priority in Newcastle’s long-term plan.
Newcastle and PIF will not want to miss out on the money on offer, especially with Newcastle aiming to be “best in class” in every department.
There are currently two routes to qualify for the Club World Cup. Clubs who have won a continental title in the past four years are automatically invited, while others make their way in through FIFA’s ranking system.
Europe has 12 slots in the Club World Cup competition, so once the continental title winners are chosen – this time it was Manchester City, Chelsea and Real Madrid – the other nine slots are given to the highest-ranking teams in Uefa.
First things first, Newcastle need to get themselves back in Europe.
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