Mainz fans demand Newcastle friendly be called off due to Saudi owners

Supporters of German club Mainz have demanded that their pre-season friendly with Newcastle United later this month gets cancelled due to the Magpies’ Saudi ownership.

Newcastle are set to take on the Bundesliga outfit in a pre-season clash on Monday, July 18, in Austria with both sides preparing for the start of their respective seasons beginning in August.

However, Mainz supporters have issued a lengthy statement ahead of the game, demanding that the tie is postponed due to Newcastle being owned by Saudi investment group PIF, with the German club’s supporters citing the club’s owners using “sport washing” to polish the image of Saudi Arabia.

The statement from Mainz supporters read: “ Newcastle United was acquired by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund PIF, which is chaired by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, in late 2021. The motive for this was probably less the enthusiasm for football or the identification with the club Newcastle United than the so-called “sport washing” – the attempt to polish the image of Saudi Arabia by entering international football.

“We recall that Saudi Arabia is not only an absolute monarchy in which democratic participation of its citizens has no place, but a country in which basic human rights are systematically disregarded. Suppression of freedom of expression and religion, persecution of homosexuals, oppression of women, use of caning and the death penalty are part of the laws there.

“So Newcastle United is not just a football club, but a vehicle for asserting the interests of a regime that tramples on human rights and whose policies are diametrically opposed to the values and mission statement of Mainz 05.

“At a time when authoritarian states, large corporations or billionaires