20/05/2026

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Fresh investment talks surround Newcastle expansion

Fifa broadcast deadlock sparks panic to India fans MILLIONS of football fans across India face the prospect of missing next month’s World Cup, as Fifa officials are currently in the country attempting to finalise a broadcast deal. The global governing body has yet to secure an agreement for the tourna ment, largely due to significant differ ences over pricing. The deadlock means that, with the World Cup kicking off on June 12, only three weeks remain to establish broad cast infrastructure and sell advertising inventory. This situation contrasts with China, where a broadcasting deal was struck last week, ending a similar stand off. Sources familiar with Fifa’s plans con firm that media rights executives are in India, though the specifics of their meet ings and agenda remain undisclosed. Fifa, in a statement to Reuters , confirmed it has concluded agreements in over 180 territories, adding that Newcastle United CEO David Hopkinson told Reuters that the club was considering building a new sta SAUDI ARABIA’S sovereign wealth fund PIF is in talks with investors over them taking a minority stake in Newcastle United as part of its fund raising plans for the Premier League club’s stadium, three people familiar with the matter said. PIF, chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, is weighing up expanding the club’s current sta dium or building a new one and could issue new shares to a prospective new backer of the plans, one of the people said.

PIF led a £305 million (RM1.6b) take over of Newcastle from British busi nessman Mike Ashley in 2021. Newcastle have succeeded in their first few seasons under Saudi ownership, twice qualifying for the Champions League and winning the League Cup last year. However, they have slipped out of the spotlight this season and are 11th in the Premier League with one game remaining, with no hopes of qualifying for next season’s European competi tions. – Reuters

investments in Formula E, boxing, ten nis and e-sports. The kingdom is also preparing to host the 2034 Fifa World Cup. While committed to deploying capi tal internationally, PIF has retooled its strategy and is moving away from some investments, including scaling back so-called giga-projects in Saudi Arabia. Newcastle manager Eddie Howe said earlier this month that PIF remained as committed as ever to the club’s success.

The club is also preparing to open a new multimillion-pound expansion of its training centre that will extend its footprint by more than 50%, Newcastle said last month. The discussions come after PIF said it would stop funding LIV Golf at the end of the 2026 season, after ploughing more than US$5 billion (RM20b) on the venture since it launched in 2022. The almost US$1 tril lion (RM4 trillion) wealth fund, the driv ing force behind Saudi Arabia’s plan to cut its reliance on oil revenues, has made sports central to its strategy, with

dium, while a renovation would cost in the hundreds of millions of pounds. A new stadium could cost in excess of £1 billion (RM5.3 billion), said Hopkinson, who referred questions about the talks involving PIF to the Saudi fund itself. Saudi Arabia’s PIF declined to com ment. Another option to raise new funds includes a potential securitisation of Newcastle’s commercial revenue, the person said, adding no decision has been made yet on the investment.

Final frontier Underdogs ‘little’ Freiburg close in on greatest achievement in club history

Freiburg coach Julian Schuster (left) and fans celebrate after reaching the 2026 Europa League final. – REUTERSPIC

F REIBURG have never won a tro phy nor qualified for the Champions League, but could achieve both with victory against Aston Villa in the Europa League final in Istanbul tomorrow (3am Malaysian time). The match at Besiktas Park is the Black Forest side’s second major final – after losing the 2022 German Cup final to Leipzig on penalties – and is just rewards for their steady development. Once not even the biggest club in

brought us to where we are today,– Ginter, a 2014 World Cup winner with Germany, said at a media day recently. “Over the past few years, there has been steady development. Personally, we might not have the biggest individual stars on paper, but we function perfectly as a team. “Since football is a team sport, that works quite well.” Ginter called the Villa clash “the big gest match in the club’s history – and we’re going to give it a real go.” Freiburg are clear underdogs. Not only are Villa among the Premier League’s best, coach Unai Emery is a four-time Europa League winner. While Villa tasted major success against German opposition beating Bayern Munich to win the 1982 European Cup, this will be just the second Premier League team Freiburg have faced, after two meetings with West Ham ended in a 5-1 aggregate defeat in the Europa League last 16 in 2023/24. Captain Guenter, 33, has spent his entire career at the club, but made it clear just reaching the final was not enough. “There’s no point in losing; that’s the motto we have to go there with. Hopefully, we’ll be able to lift the cup at the end. “To experience that would be incredi ble. But you can dream all you want, it has to be achieved first. For many years, peo ple told me, ‘Just move to a bigger club if you want to win titles or play in Europe.’ We were able to disprove that together. That’s the result of years of hard work from every single person. Many right decisions were made at the top.” – AFP

Nicolas Hoefler, a 36-year-old midfielder who will retire in the summer after two decades at the club, stood motionless on the pitch as overjoyed fans streamed onto it. He told reporters he struggled to believe what “little” Freiburg had achieved. Germany’s strict member-control rules restrict outside investment, mean ing there are few shortcuts to success for ambitious sides. Freiburg are the model example of methodical, gradual self improvement, based on good decisions and a clear sense of identity. The two most important coaches in Freiburg’s history – Volker Finke and Christian Streich – each served for over a decade, keeping their jobs despite relega tions. Current manager Julian Schuster took over from Streich in 2024 after play ing for the club since 2008 and the transi tion went smoothly. Schuster took Freiburg close to Champions League qualification in his first season. This year, Freiburg made the German Cup semifinals – and the Europa League showpiece. The club’s core playing group features several long-time servants, many of them graduates of the Freiburg academy. Captain Christian Guenter, defender Matthias Ginter, Hoefler and rising star Johan Manzambi are just some of the club’s junior products. Freiburg-born Ginter, 32, said his side’s collective values have laid the groundwork for success. “It’s about the shared virtues which have distinguished the club for years and

discussions in India regarding media rights were ongoing and “must remain confiden tial at this stage”. Previous reports indi cate that discussions between the Reliance Disney joint venture,

Freiburg, the club are enjoying the most successful period in their history. While German giants with huge followings like Hamb u r g , Schalke and Stuttgart have wobbled and suffered rele gation in recent sea sons, Freiburg have estab lished them selves as European regulars. Freiburg’s success is a

India’s largest media company, and Fifa have stalled. Reliance Disney joint venture offered US$20 million (RM80m) for the Fifa rights. That led to a disagreement because Fifa had ini tially sought US$100 million (RM397m) but

was last looking for around US$60 million (RM238m) at least, Reuters has reported. Sony, another major player in the Indian market, has refrained from bidding. The Reliance-Disney ven ture, led by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, declined to com ment on whether a meeting with Fifa is scheduled. – The Independent

result of a strong community connection along with loyalty to coaches rarely seen in mod ern football. Moments after beating Braga to reach the final,

Four nations confirm joint bid to host 2028 Africa Cup of Nations

SOUTH AFRICA, Botswana, Namibia and Zimbabwe have bid to co-host the 2028 Africa Cup of Nations finals in what would be a first for the continent with four countries staging a single event, though it would not be without precedent. Botswana Football Association president Tariq Babitseng confirmed the bid had been submitted in time and they are hopeful of earning the hosting rights.

to have four nations host a continental finals tournament. The 2020 edition of the European Championship was staged across 11 countries, while England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland will co host in 2028. The 2007 Asian Cup was held in Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam. South Africa (1996 & 2013) and Angola (2010) are the only Southern African nations to have hosted the Cup of Nations before. – Reuters

southern Africa,” Babitseng told reporters in Harare, where he was elected the new president of the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa), the largest of CAF’s six zonal unions. “We have the transport routes and the infrastructure to host a successful tournament.” South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe will co host the 2027 Cricket World Cup next year. While unusual, it would not be unprecedented

While there is no official plan by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to rotate the hosting of the tournament, the last three editions have been staged in central, west and north Africa, and the 2027 finals will be co-hosted by Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in the east of the continent. “The south, therefore, may feel it is due. We submitted on time to host the tournament in