Last update on.From section Premier League
Staveley, Newcastle part-owner, on the way forward
Amnesty International and the Premier League have agreed to meet for discussions about a revised directors' and owners' test after Newcastle's Saudi-backed takeover.
After the takeover of Premier League, Richard Masters was contacted by Amnesty asking for human rights violations to be included in any future rules.
It previously pointed out that Saudi Arabia has an "appalling” record on this issue, and said that the rules for club ownership were "woefully inadequat".
The Premier League claims it has "legally binding assurances" that the country’s Public Investment Fund has 80% control over the club. This is despite Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman being the chair of PIF.
The Premier League will listen to Amnesty's concerns. It will review its directors' and owners' tests, as it does often after a takeover.
This test is used to determine whether there has been any criminal activity by potential owners. However, it does not currently address human rights allegations.
Sacha Deshmukh is Amnesty International UK’s interim chief executive. She stated: "We are obviously happy that the Premier League is willing talk about these propositions as a starting point to what we hope will become a process that significantly strengthens the rules on football governance."
"The current rules regarding who owns and controls English football clubs is woefully inadequat. There's no prohibition on those who are complicit with torture, slavery, or war crimes being owned.
"We are keen to discuss our ideas with Richard Masters for a human-rights-compliant Owners’ and Directors' test that can help weed out unsuspecting owners complicit in human right violations as well as reduce sportswashing and improve governance within the game."
