Not sure how they work this out. Could be ongoing for a while imo. Taken from a mag comment.
Very lengthy and informative article by Matt Slater in The Athletic on the takeover this morning, which is largely positive while remaining realistic. The bit that it all boils down to, IMO, is that "...the Premier League cannot see a way to sanction the deal without Saudi Arabia unblocking beIN Sports, shutting down beoutQ and opening up its courts."
"One source described the situation as a "potential disaster that could become the biggest win-win in history" if the Premier League can persuade the Saudis to properly crack down on beoutQ, lift its blockade of beIN and allow its lawyers to take custom from aggrieved overseas rights-holders... and then, when the Premier League's Middle East and North African broadcast rights become available again in 2022, a legitimate Saudi Arabian sports broadcaster can give beIN a run for its money in the auction, creating genuine competition in the region and very probably driving the price up."
Back in February it seems the PL's head of legal made some comments to this effect, noting that it's impossible for them to access the Saudi justice system to do anything about the piracy."I'd like to see it be on a level playing field with any other territory where there's a number of illegal operators in the market, so I can go there, I can get evidence of what's going on, and I have access to legal remedies."
They're basically saying this WTO report is going to be additional leverage for the PL and beIN, too, as it's so heavily in their favour and against Saudi Arabia, so that's another potential cause for the ongoing delay. Staveley and Co. most recently answered PL questions on Wednesday, and there's still a heavy back-and-forth ongoing.
Suppose it all boils down to how much MBS is willing to bend in order to get control of NUFC and get a foothold in the Premier League, because it seems the PL (and beIN's) positions are pretty clear.
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