Premier League clubs have voted with 13 to seven against the introduction of a temporary ban on loan deals between related party clubs.
The verdict was passed on Tuesday afternoon and means that clubs will be allowed to sign players on loan or allow players to leave on loan to clubs that are under the same ownership model or have the same owners.
This affects a few teams in the Premier League, most notably the likes of Newcastle United, who have four Saudi Arabian clubs in the Saudi Pro League with the same ownership as them, the Saudi Public Investment Fund, as well as the likes of Manchester City, who are a part of the City Football Group, which includes the likes of Melbourne City, Mumbai City and New York City as well as Girona and Troyes.
Brighton and Hove Albion are another club with a similar model as Tony Bloom, their owner, also controls Belgian Jupiler Pro League side Royale Union Saint-Gilloise. Chelsea and Ligue 1 club Strasbourg also share an ownership affiliation.
The vote on this ruling comes within a few weeks of Newcastle United reportedly lining up Al Hilal midfielder Ruben Neves on loan, with the Portuguese international playing for one of the four clubs in the Saudi Pro League owned by the PIF.
Eddie Howe, when asked about this ruling and the potential ban on this sort of transfer, was coy and said he would ‘leave it up to you’ (journalists) to determine as to the timing of the potential ban.
Newcastle are now expected to show a genuine interest in Ruben Neves as they seek midfield reinforcements during the upcoming January transfer window.
They lost Italian international Sandro Tonali last month due to a ban for illegal betting. The Magpies have already struggled with several absentees so far this season, which has affected their consistency, as mentioned by Kieran Trippier in a confrontation with Newcastle supporters at the Vitality Stadium prior to the international break, following their 2-0 defeat to AFC Bournemouth.
