Newcastle United (England) will host the South Korean national soccer team in a friendly at St. James’ Park.

English Premier League (EPL) club Newcastle announced today (Sept. 16) on the club’s official website that it will host two international friendlies featuring the Saudi Arabia men’s national football team in September at its home ground, St. James’ Park.

According to Newcastle’s announcement, the Saudis will play Costa Rica on Sept. 8 and face South Korea on Sept. 12. The South Korean team will play Wales in a friendly on Sept. 8 at 3:45 p.m., followed by Saudi Arabia on Sept. 12.

There’s a reason Saudi Arabia is playing a friendly at Newcastle’s home stadium. Newcastle was purchased by a consortium led by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund (PIF) in 2021. With their newfound oil money, the Magpies have become a Premier League force to be reckoned with, signing the likes of Alexander Isaacs (24) and Nick Pope (31) last summer, finishing fourth and qualifying for this season’s UEFA Champions League (UCL).

This summer saw even bigger investments. We brought in Italian international midfielder Sandro Tonali, 23, from AC Milan and made other big signings including Harvey Barnes, 26, and Tino Livramento, 21. A 5-1 thrashing of Aston Villa on the opening day of the Premier League hinted at another strong season.

The Saudis made an upset at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, beating eventual champions Argentina 2-1, led by Lionel Messi (36-Inter Miami). Since then, the 스포츠토토 kingdom has lured some of the world’s biggest stars, including Cristiano Ronaldo (38, Al Nasr) in January and Karim Benzema (36, Al Ittihad) and Neymar (31, Al Hilal) this summer, to its domestic league in a massive oil money offensive. Saudi Arabia’s influence in the soccer market is becoming enormous.

Meanwhile, the South Korean national team will play two A matches in September, followed by a friendly against Tunisia on Oct. 13. The team will then begin the second round of qualifying for the 2026 North and Central American World Cup in November.