Newcastle Utd takeover and the Crystal Palace banner.

Fr Tod Umptious

I'm putting this here because I think its a current affair and since the upgrade Soccer is now in a black hole in Groups.

So background.

Newcastle Utd soccer club were bought by a consortium with strong links to the Saudi government.

The fans love it because they are now loaded and compete with the other loaded clubs, but a lot of other groups are unhappy about it because of the history of the Saudi government when it comes to human rights etc.

What also pisses off a lot of people iis that apparently the premier league have some sort of ownership test to make sure new owners are upstanding and of good character, but that gets thrown out the window if the price is good enough.

The premier league pays lip service to taking the knee, LGBTQ+ initiaves etc, but still has no problem allowing a government that murders journalists in embassies becoming owners.

Newcastle Utd played at Crystal Palace yesterday and the palace fans had a huge banner, that must really have irked the premier league.

So much so that it's being investigated by police.

Is it because the cartoon on the banner is offense to Arabs ?

Probably, but I hope more fans do the same and keep doing it.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2021/oct/23/callum-wilson-is-the-best-natural-finisher-ive-worked-with

celt262

If they had off bought Palace them fans would have been delighted.

KevRossi

Premier League only care about money, nothing else.

Not all NUFC fans are happy about the Saudi's buying them out, as bad as Mike Ashley was, they'd prefer not to have them around.

The banner isn't offensive, but in true John Delaney style, as long as it plsses off the top brass then something will be done about it.

The UK has thriving arms deals with the Saudi's that maintain thousands of jobs in the UK, so the press going after this story is a bit two-faced, I won't even start on their (and our) dependency on oil and gas from countries with brutal human rights track records.

The press in the UK is in general two-faced and amongst the most unscrupulous in 'democratic' countries.

The UAE own Man City, Qataris are heavily invested in sport worldwide as sportwashing becomes the latest thing.

We constantly hear how wonderful Dubai is and that it's the perfect destination for work and holidays, in truth it is built on modern day slavery.

So the fuss around NUFC is all a bit insincere and hyprocritical.

Posted from my iPhone, which has a terrible record of labour rights abuses and suicides in its factories in China.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118065295#Comment_118065295

Totally agree.

That's the nature of the soccer fan, or any sports fan I guess.

Drug cheats, suspect owners, players who get in bother with the law, they'll make excuses if it's their club or players.

storker

It's good to see that real crime in the UK is at such an all-time low that the Police have the time to waste on this.

osarusan

Palace fans and other fans will use the takeover to get a dig in, but they'd happily welcome a similar owner to their own clubs. And Newcastle fans would be doing the same thing if roles were reversed.

People can waffle on about "sportwashing" and the like, but that waffle achieves nothing.

It has long been evident that if you are particularly good at kicking a ball, or hitting it with a bat, or throwing it through a basket, or good at any sport that makes loads of money (or anything that makes loads of money), they you can get away with almost anything. And if owners have the money to buy players who can do these things, they can get away with almost anything too.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118065321#Comment_118065321

The banner isn't offensive, but in true John Delaney style, as long as it plsses off the top brass then something will be done about it.

But why are the police involved ?

With the "Delaney Out" banners the Gardai on site removed them, but in this case the banner has been reported to the police, it was not removed.

So what was the reason for reporting the banner in the first place ?

Soccer fans are hypocrites. Big shock.

Fr Tod Umptious

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118065547#Comment_118065547

Don't think anyone is arguing that.

What I'd like to know is why is it a police matter.

The only way I can figure it's a police matter is if someone reported it because they took offense (or took offense on someone else's behalf) for the cartoonish depiction of the Arab character on the banner.

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118065586#Comment_118065586

Yeah I guess someone reported it. It doesn't mean anything will come of it.

Beasty

As quoted in the article

"On Saturday 23 October police received a report of an offensive banner displayed by Crystal Palace fans. Officers are assessing the information and carrying out enquiries. Any allegations of racist abuse will be taken very seriously."

They cannot ignore any reports of racism. Of course that does not prove there is any racist intent either.

Fr Tod Umptious

Well the police are done with it.

No laws broken by the banner.

Common sense prevails.

http://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2021/1025/1255790-police-say-crystal-palace-banner-broke-no-laws/

Polar101

200 lashes to anyone who dares to suggest the Public Investment Fund aren't a great bunch of lads.

RobbingBandit

Mike Ashley was a naughty boy

Shao Kahn

No matter how ridiculous professional football becomes, it will still always be superior entertainment and a vastly superior sporting spectacle than watching a bunch of muck savages throwing a ball around on a GAA pitch pretending it's an elite sport.

Just getting in first, before the inevitable GAA fan uses trashing football as their favorite way to promote their own sport! ;)

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118073122#Comment_118073122

To quote Jack Nicholson, "why can't we all just get along"? Say what you will about the GAA, but at least it's rooted in local counties. A true grass roots sporting body. Some things money just can't buy. So many professional sports would kill to have the same ethos.