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1/ Today's takeover clickbaity article is Angus MacNeil MP's letter to to Liz Truss (Trade Secretary) telling her to block the takeover. Quite frankly, it makes no difference, Oliver Dowden (Sec of State for Culture, Media & Sport) already said itâs a matter for the PL...
2/ However, I've had loads more messages and @rjrosser1 (with time on his hands waiting at court) and I took a further look. Breaking down each section of the letter it is jam packed full of incorrect statements!
3/ âSports Rights are one of the UKâs most valuable & treasured exportsâ. The last DFIT report doesnât have sports rights in the top 10 goods or services. UK yearly GDP is 2.855 trillion USD, the exported broadcasting rights are worth approx. 1.8 billion USD per year. Negligible.
4/ âSA Govt has actively supported BeoutQâ. That isnât what the ruling says, itâs omission rather than act by failing to prosecute and failing to allow Qatar/BeIn to protect their rights. SA werenât in the right but they are not actively pirating broadcasts as has been suggested.
5/ âStolen broadcasting rights for three yearsâ. BeoutQ was shut down in August 2019, BeoutQ was founded in August 2017. So itâs two years. A small point but an important one which shows a lack of research and understanding.
6/Mr MacNeil then continues into a fairly emotive rant about how its an affront to the Premier League and an insult to the UK Government. If the UK Government are being insulted it seems difficult to understand how theyâre then lining up trade deals and receiving PPE.
7/âSaudi Arabia donât play by International Lawâ. This could be debated in a book, but the WTO donât make laws, they make International Trade Rules. âSA should have not part in UK Sportâ. where does this leave Sheffield Utd who are owned by another member of the SA Royal Family?
8/ âSaudi Arabia own and control PIFâ. As @thefootballlaw has discussed at length, PIF and SA are different entities and should be treated as such. Itâs not right to say that PIF has responsibility for the actions of the Saudi state.
9 / I wont go on to discuss what Mr MacNeil thinks is morally/ethically the right way to do business, those headlines speak for themselves. But, if random Politicians must add themselves to the list of people wading in on our takeover, I wish they'd get the basic facts right!
