This is perfectly illustrated by the proposed takeover of Newcastle United in the English Premier League by Saudi Arabia and interests related to the Crown Prince, and the fact the regime are frontrunners to secure what is regarded as the biggest in boxing match in history between British duo Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, who hold all the world heavyweight title belts between them.

I am not alone in thinking that the sale of Newcastle by sports goods entrepreneur Mike Ashley to the Saudis is deeply worrying to say the least, as is the prospect of a Fury-Joshua clash, probably next year, being another showpiece in a sportswashed Saudi oasis rather than in the open air at Wembley Stadium, where the much-awaited domestic dual should be taking place. But that’s blow business for you!

Of course these latest developments are not yet finalised but they indicate once again the obvious intent of the Saudis to brush a veneer of respectability over their reputation as one one of the world’s most reviled abusers of human rights.

Saudi Arabia has no great record of international sporting achievement. So the philosophy seems to be: "If you can’t beat ‘em, buy ‘em!"

Sportswashing seems to be the new buzzword as far as the Middle East is concerned, particularly in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia where they are determined to make their influence felt in world sport by waving huge wads of banknotes at it.

They already have a toehold in the Premier League with the ownership of Sheffield United and it looks as if their bid for Newcastle will be rubber-stamped despite objections from some other clubs and human rights bodies such as Amnesty International.

These days, the "English Premier League" seems something of misnomer, with only five of the current 20 clubs wholly British-owned and the bulk of the star players coming from overseas.

There is no doubt that the majority of Newcastle fans will be glad to see the back of the deeply unloved Mike Ashley, an unambitious man who will not be greatly missed by English football.

Yet some of the more deeply thinking of them will not rejoice at the acquisition of the club by a country synonymous with mass executions to suppress dissent. Last April, 27 dissidents were put to death by beheading in a single day, including two boys aged 16 and 17 respectively. They were said to be guilty of "terrorism and extremist thinking" and later some of their heads were put on poles as a warning to others, just like England in medieval times. So it is a nation ruled by tyranny now using what can only be termed as blood money in an attempt to attain that element of respectability. It will certainly be seen as a new low in the English game.

The deal is said to be financed by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, which is run by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. He has been publicly accused of being behind the murder of the US-based dissident Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi, who was strangled and then dismembered by a bone saw by a team of Saudi assassins sent to the Saudi Embassy in Istanbul and his remains taken away in a plastic bag. The Crown Prince denies any involvement and Saudi Arabia has executed five men and imprisoned several others for the murder.

Understandably the Saudis are preparing a public relations exercise to address the concerns of human rights and other areas.

While bin Salman would not be a director of Newcastle United, the proposed new chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan is also on the Board of the PIF and therefore takes direct orders from the Crown Prince.

The Middle East influence on English football will be quite pronounced, with close links between Manchester City‘s owners - Abu Dhabi United Group (ADUG) - and Saudi Arabia. ADUG is owned by Sheikh Mansour, who is a senior member of the United Arab Emirates Government and brother to the Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed. The UAE and Saudi Arabia have been allies in the Yemeni Civil War since 2015 during which they have been accused of numerous atrocities, which again they deny.

Saudi Arabia is also set to compete for the Premier League TV rights and end the issue of piracy in the country should the takeover of Newcastle be approved. Qatar-based beIN Sports is the rights holder for the Middle East and North Africa and has urged the Premier League to block the £300 million deal, citing illegal streaming of top-flight matches in Saudi Arabia. There is a long-standing conflict between Qatar and Saudi Arabia and it is clear there will be worries about the arrival of Saudi as owners of another Premier League team.

Other concerns have been raised about how easy it would be should the Saudis take over Newcastle and at some time wish to buy a player from the Saudi-owned Sheffield United, or vice versa. 

In fairness it has to be said that there is some evidence of reform, with the lifting of bans on women driving and attending selected sports events in which there is an international focus. Indeed Saudi Arabia has staged a number of such happenings, including big fights, one of which featured Joshua regaining his world titles against Andy Ruiz Jr. Those journalists who attended said that apart from the ban on alcohol and gambling it was just like any other major boxing event held anywhere in the world, with women mingling with men in the crowd and not even required to wear the head covering which, like other temporally relaxed restrictions, remains compulsory when the sportswash caravan has moved on.

As for the Saudi interest in hosting the Fury-Joshua fight, once boxing is back there are several complications, though none of which cannot be solved by money.

Fury is contracted to a third meeting with the WBC champion he so brilliantly demolished, Deontay Wilder, and Joshua is due to defend his regained title against the Bulgarian Kubrat Pulev, ranked as the world’s number 10, in Las Vegas and London respectively. Both fights were originally scheduled for July this year but because of coronavirus these engagements will need to be postponed.

This has given rival promoters Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn - plus American Bob Arum - a window to open negotiations with fight venues and talk about offering the two British fighters' respective opponents what is known as in the trade as "step-aside money". The Saudis are to the forefront in these talks. As such an inducement would amount to several million dollars, the odds are it would be accepted, with the two opponents offered a bouts against the winner.

Let us remember, however, that sport did help build the road for Nelson Mandela's long walk to freedom in South Africa.

Maybe sport can do the same in Saudi Arabia. Who knows? 

While I do not approve of the shedloads of hard cash now being thrown at sport to stage major events there, as I have said before if I was a betting man, I would say that by the end of this century the world will have witnessed many being held in what was erstwhile a sporting desert. Perhaps even an Olympic Games. Probably because nowhere else will be able to afford them.