LONDON (BLOOMBERG) – Newcastle United football club asked fans to stop wearing traditional Arabic clothing or head coverings if they wouldn’t ordinarily wear such attire to soccer matches.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund’s purchase of Newcastle for £305 million (S$560 million) from billionaire Mike Ashley earlier this month prompted celebrating supporters to wear Middle East-inspired outfits at the first match after the deal’s conclusion with Tottenham Hotspur FC last Sunday.
Yasir Al Rumayyan, governor of the investment fund and the club’s new chairman, wore a suit.
While no one among the new owners were offended by the attire of supporters, dressing in such a way may be culturally inappropriate and risks causing offence to others, the club said in a statement on Wednesday (Oct 20).
“All visitors to the club are, as always, encouraged to wear whatever is the norm for their our culture or religion,” it said.
In the first major move by the club’s new ownership, it announced on Wednesday that coach Steve Bruce had left the club after a two-year reign, with the team languishing in the second-last position of the Premier League.
