Leading human rights activists have urged Newcastle City Council to take a firmer stance against alleged “sportswashing” by Saudi Arabia during a meeting with council leader Karen Kilgour.
A delegation of campaigners, including Saudi citizens with imprisoned family members, met with Kilgour on Tuesday to raise concerns over the region’s growing links to the Gulf state, following Newcastle United’s takeover in 2021 by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). The acquisition sparked accusations that the football club was being used to deflect attention from Saudi Arabia’s human rights record.
Newcastle’s ties with Saudi Arabia have deepened in recent years. During a UK trade mission last year, city officials hailed Newcastle as the “gateway to Saudi,” despite reports that the kingdom executed more than 300 people in 2024. North East Mayor Kim McGuinness also joined Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer on a December visit to Riyadh to discuss energy and investment opportunities.
Among those in Tuesday’s delegation was activist Fouz al-Otaibi, whose sister Manahel, a fitness instructor and women’s rights advocate, was sentenced to 11 years in prison—her disappearance condemned by Amnesty International. Others included Lina al-Hathloul, sister of jailed women’s rights activist Loujain al-Hathloul, Human Rights Watch researcher Joey Shea, Saudi activist Yahya Assiri, and ALQST executive director Julia Legner.
The group presented a list of demands, including calls for the council to:
- Raise human rights concerns directly with NUFC chairman and PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan
- Monitor Newcastle’s use as a “sportswashing vehicle”
- Highlight individual human rights cases, potentially granting honorary citizenship to figures like Manahel
Al-Hathloul, who previously visited Newcastle in 2023 ahead of Saudi Arabia’s national team playing at St James’ Park, described the meeting as a “good step” but warned against it becoming a mere “tick box exercise.”
She urged the council to exert public pressure, stating: “I feel like the council belittles itself by saying, ‘we can’t do anything, we don’t have leverage.’ There is a lack of political will to push and pressure.”
Legner added that while the council expressed “sympathy and solidarity,” it declined to take a photo with the activists and showed little willingness to act on their requests.
Speaking at a subsequent public briefing organised by NUFC Fans Against Sportswashing and the University and College Union, she said: “Investment from Saudi Arabia, China, or other repressive regimes is inevitable. But local leaders have an opportunity to balance this by speaking out on rights abuses.”
She added: “They have the power to do good, and we hope they will use it.”
Following the 45-minute meeting, Kilgour reaffirmed Newcastle’s stance as a “City of Sanctuary” and condemned human rights abuses worldwide. However, she maintained that it was the British Government’s responsibility to address concerns at a national level.
She said: “As a council, we expect all organisations based in this city to share our values, and we will continue to promote them. But as I have stated before, it is for the national government to raise concerns around human rights abuses in Saudi Arabia.”
Emails obtained last year by NUFC Fans Against Sportswashing revealed efforts by senior council officials to secure investment from Saudi Arabia.
Kilgour, an NUFC season ticket holder, added that Newcastle fans “do not condone human rights abuses,” but their relationship remains with the club and the team on the pitch.
Newcastle United Football Club declined to comment.
