Why Newcastle United chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan was sat with Donald Trump and Elon Musk at UFC event
Newcastle's chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan was spotted front row at the combat event
As Newcastle United's players and staff were spotted taking in a night of boxing over in Riyadh on Saturday evening, the club's chairman - Public Investment Fund chief Yasir Al-Rumayyan - was enjoying his own front row seats at a different combat event in America.
The Saudi chief was spotted sat directly next to United States President-elect Donald Trump inside Madison Square Garden as he took in UFC 309, along with Trump's recently-appointed cabinets picks Robert Kennedy Jr and Tulsi Gabbard - and election campaign backer Elon Musk.
Al-Rumayyan's attendance left many back on Tyneside scratching their heads but there are a number of reasons the Newcastle chief needs to have the ear of one of the world's most powerful men - and the main one revolves around golf.
The pair being sat alongside one another, as Jon Jones capped off the evening's entertainment by beating Stipe Miocic to retain his UFC Heavyweight title, has only fuelled speculation about a potential peace deal involving LIV Golf and the PGA Tour. Al-Rumayyan, who heads up his country's sovereign wealth fund, is the chairman of LIV Golf - the controversial golf league that held it's first event in 2022.
After initially pulling the world's best players away from the PGA Tour - and a golfing civil war subsequently breaking out - there is now speculation a partnership between the two entities is a possibility. Reports of late have suggested PIF will invest around $1.5billion [£1.1billion] in PGA Tour Enterprises when the partnership is finally formed.
Trump recently enjoyed a round of golf with PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan at his course in West Palm Beach, Florida. This, after the 2024 presidential candidate boldly claimed he could solve the golf uncertainty in "15 minutes" during one of his final campaign pledges earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Al-Rumayyan and Monahan recently enjoyed a round of golf together at the DP World Tour’s Alfred Dunhill Links Championship last month. The Newcastle chairman could be seen sporting the Magpies' new Adidas training gear as he made his way around the 18 holes.
The golf development comes just weeks after Al-Rumayyan shared PIF's future plans for winding down some of their international exploits in favour of funding domestic projects. This pledge isn't expected to prompt the pulling out of current arrangements outside of Saudi Arabia but PIF, who remain committed to Newcastle, intend to cut the level of funding abroad between 18 and 20 per cent, down from their current 30 per cent.