Explainers

AMANDA Staveley is a British businesswoman who had a key role in the Saudi-Arabia consortium buyout of Newcastle United.Staveley has strong Middle Eastern connections and been involved with the purchase of Manchester City and a large investment in Barclays Bank.
Amanda Staveley now has a 10 per cent stake in Newcastle United
Who is Amanda Staveley?
Amanda Louise Staveley was born on April 11, 1973, near Ripon, West Riding in Yorkshire.
Robert Staveley, her father, is a landowner and founder of the Lightwater Valley theme park and her mum Lynne was a champion showjumper and occasional model.
Staveley attended Queen Margaret’s School in York before going to St Catherine’s College, Cambridge, to read modern languages but she dropped out.
She founded PCP Capital Partners in 2005 which has an office in Park Lane, London, and its headquarters in Abu Dhabi.

In September 2021, Staveley had a key role in Sheikh Mansour’s £210million purchase of Manchester City, through the Abu Dhabi United Group.
The deal is said to have earned PCP a commission valued at £10m.
The company was also involved in negotiations by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Dubai International Capital to buy a 49 per cent stake in Liverpool FC although the deal ultimately failed.
Her strong Middle Eastern connections also helped with her involvement with the investment in Barclays Bank towards the end of 2008.
The bank had been looking to recapitalise by raising money privately rather than accept a bail-out from the government following the financial crisis earlier in the year.
Staveley reportedly earned a fee of £30million for her role in the transaction, according to a report by Euromoney.
She has been involved in two previous attempts to take over Newcastle United and was successful on the third attempt.
The first £300m bid was made on November 20, 2017, but failed.
A second attempt, also said to be worth £300m, which was mainly funded by the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, was reported in April 2020 but fell through on July 30, 2020, according to the BBC.
Staveley was finally successful with a bid, also said to be worth £300m, on October 7, 2021, which saw her take a 10 per cent share in the club as did Reuben Brothers, and the Saudi Public Investment Fund took an 80 per cent share.
What is Amanda Staveley’s net worth?
It has previously been reported Staveley’s net worth is £110million although some estimates have put this slightly higher at £115m.
The bulk of her fortune is thought to come from her high-profile deals.
She has been described as “Britain’s most glamorous financier”.
Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi married in October 2011Credit: Getty
Who is Amanda Staveley’s husband Mehrdad Ghodoussi?
Staveley married Iranian-British financier Mehrdad Ghodoussi in October 2011.
They were married in West Wycombe Park in Buckinghamshire.
The pair are thought to live in Dubai but have a home in central London as well.
Do Amanda Staveley and Mehrdad Ghodoussi have children?
It’s not thought the couple have any children.
Ghodoussi’s Instagram account is set to private but he is active on Twitter, where his posts are rarely personal.
Amanda Staveley says she is excited about Newcastle’s future after £300m Saudi takeover completed as Mike Ashley reign ends More

WANDA NARA is the agent and wife of Paris Saint-Germain and Argentina striker Mauro Icardi.The blonde bombshell ditched the Argentine’s former team-mate and close friend Maxi Lopez when she began a fling with him in 2013.
Wanda and Mauro have been in a relationship since 2013Credit: Instagram @wanda_icardi
Find out all you need to know about the twists and turns in Mauro and Wanda’s eventful relationship.Who is Wanda Nara?
Wanda is believed to be one of the most powerful women in European football.
She has three sons from her relationship with Lopez: Valentino Gaston Lopez, Constantino Lopez and Benedicto Lopez.
When she’s not securing her husband’s latest contract or arranging a transfer to PSG, she is earning big bucks from modelling shoots.
Nara is not afraid to get her kit off and she has previously posed naked.
How did Mauro Icardi and Wanda Nara meet?
In his book, Icardi revealed that Nara first got in touch with him when she was still married to Lopez.
Lopez famously refused to shake Icardi’s hand when Inter Milan faced Torino in April later that year.
Icardi then raised a few eyebrows after he decided to get a tattoo of the former couple’s three children on his arm.
The goalscorer also revealed he has sex with his wife an incredible 12 times a day.
What happened when Wanda accused Mauro Icardi of cheating?
In October 2021, Wanda apparently confessed to splitting up with husband Mauro.
She admitted that the relationship had reached the end in an Instagram stories screengrab shared by a friend.
Wanda seemed to accuse the PSG striker Mauro of cheating on her in an explosive social media post.
She said: “Another family that you have ruined for a s**g”
Then she deleted him on social media and removed him from her Instagram account.
What happened with the ‘audio leak sex scandal’?
In February 2018, Nara was forced to deny that she had cheated on Icardi after a fake “audio leak”.
She has described allegations of her rumoured affair as “fake news” after an audio clip did the rounds on WhatsApp.
The ex-Inter Milan star’s wife – and agent – revealed people spreading lies will “pay the consequences for false accusations”.
Wanda poses in a swimsuit on the beachCredit: Instagram @wanda_icardi
Wanda enjoys a spell on the seaside in another swimsuitCredit: Instagram @wanda_icardi More