An Amnesty International official said Saudi Arabia's human rights record was "horrible", and the failed acquisition of English club Newcastle was not the first attempt to whitewash that record with sport and would not be the last.
Stephen Cockburn, head of Amnesty International's economic and social justice program, spoke in an article in the British newspaper, The Guardian, about the paradoxical sentiment that a number of Newcastle fans had released.
He explained that the fans wanted to get rid of the current owner of the club, Mike Ashley, and they wager on the arrival of a new administration that leads the club to the podiums, but they did not accept that this dream was achieved by a party burdened with a bad record in the field of human rights.
As a fan, he said, "I never wanted to use our club as a tool of public relations and divert attention from violations (in Saudi Arabia) such as arresting and torturing human rights activists."
Cockburn pointed out that Newcastle is not just a club, but it means a lot thanks to the values reflected by the fans, including their support for the largest food bank in every match on the team's stadium.
He said that the failure of Saudi plans to acquire Newcastle should push the English Premier League to begin work to renew the mechanisms for choosing who can own a club, with greater eagerness to examine the rights records of potential owners, and considered that the failed Newcastle deal was not the first attempt to use sport to wash off human rights abuses. It will not be the last.
Last Thursday, the Saudi Public Investment Fund announced that it had withdrawn the offer it previously made to acquire Newcastle Club for $ 391 million from its owner Mike Ashley.
The withdrawal of the bid came after the sports and rights circles launched a campaign against the deal because of Saudi Arabia's record of human rights violations and its involvement in piracy operations of major sports tournaments - including the English Premier League - through the network of pirate channels (beoutQ).
It is noteworthy that the Saudi Fund made its offer 4 months ago, but it did not exceed the Premier League owners and managers test.