Do fans really care who owns the club?

NO Alex Hurst Newcastle United Supporters Trust

THE outrage over the takeover has been frustrating and baffling. The celebrations have been from a complete relief and happiness that Mike Ashley’s reign is over. The future of our club is safe and under Ashley I was not sure it was. That’s a really good place to be.

Tens of thousands of supporters had walked away from the club. I know people who have not been to St James’ Park since 2008 who will be there today. To see them return will be as good as anything else.

Whoever had bought the club, I think you would have seen this outpouring of emotion.

Loads of people will make money out of this: the league, the owners, newspapers, Ashley. The only people who don’t make any money and had no vested interest are the fans. We didn’t have a say. We have the least power but are expected to take the most responsibility.

The Saudi ownership does not bother me as a fan. It bothers me as an individual but not as a football fan. The Royal Family and the Government roll out the red carpet for the Saudi royal family. We are told they are allies of the UK. Lots of other businesses work with

Saudi Arabia but suddenly, as a football fan, you need to have an issue with it. No one expected us to change the practices of Sports Direct.

All we can do is hold the owners to account about how they run our club. There will be people who don’t like it. There might be people who never go again. But overall there is a sense of euphoria.

YES Paul Collingwood Newcastle season-ticket holder

I WILL be at St James’ Park today but I seriously considered not going. In all honesty, I would have preferred if the league had rejected the takeover. But they didn’t so it’s my call to make now. I am going because I don’t feel like me backing the team is me backing the owners — just as it wasn’t under Ashley — and because of some naive optimism that the increased profile may start to change things in Saudi Arabia.

There is a tendency to view this issue as: you are either completely against it or you’re turning up today wearing Saudi dress. I think the reality is far more complex.

It is true that 95 per cent of the Supporters Trust members backed the takeover but there has also been other surveys that showed more than 80 per cent had concerns over Saudi Arabia’s human rights record. That was good to see.

I’m sure there will be positives for the club and the city, which is great, but if we do achieve success, the wider issue of sportswashing is a concern.

Ashley leaving is great, of course. But it’s still swapping a useless owner for a group ‘linked’ to a pretty horrible regime and there’s no comparison.

I’ve been going to St James’ Park since the late 80s and it’s always been a rollercoaster so this is really just yet another weird turn. Whether it’s a positive one or not, only time will tell.