Red Bull deal could open door to marquee Newcastle signings

Energy drinks giant Red Bull are closing in on a deal to give cash-strapped Premiership outfit Newcastle Falcons some wings, and they are hopeful of it being completed by the start of July.

RugbyPass exclusively revealed late last week that Red Bull, who are owned by Austrian company Red Bull GmbH and are the third most recognisable soft-drink brand in the world behind Coca-Cola and Pepsi, want to buy the Falcons.

The Falcons were put up for sale by owner Semore Kurdi over a year ago and have been in talks with Premiership Rugby and CVC Capital Partners about a multi-million-pound bailout to enable them to continue playing next season.

However, it is understood that talks with Red Bull are at an advanced stage and will be concluded within weeks, securing the Falcons’ long-term future and potentially returning them to the kind of force they were under the ownership of Sir John Hall.

Hall’s takeover of Newcastle Gosforth in 1995 brought about one of the biggest makeovers in rugby history, which resulted in All Black Inga Tuigamala making the sensational switch to the club in a world-record £1m deal.

The same could happen again, this time on a larger scale, with planning already under way to bring a huge marquee signing to Kingston Park at some point next season with the help of their new owners.

Red Bull already has a massive sports portfolio, ranging from extreme sports like cliff diving, BMX, skiing, flying, and skateboarding to football and motor racing, and one of their athletes is former England winger Jack Nowell.

It is not the first time Red Bull have sniffed around rugby. At one point, they were interested in becoming Exeter Chiefs shirt sponsors, and insiders have said the IPL-style franchise model for the Premiership recently mooted appeals to them.

Falcons director of rugby Steve Diamond told RugbyPass earlier this week that it is a good time for big businesses to invest in rugby, especially given the demographic audience the sport is attracting.

“I have nothing to say about Red Bull. But big multi-national companies would look to invest in what they see is a growing sport. We’ve got 15 British and Irish Lions coming out of the Premiership.

“The league is looking good. We just need the right sort of investors. One of the interesting stats for me that came out was an increase in people between 18 to 34 watching rugby.

“I’m pretty sure for a company like Red Bull or something similar, that is the demographic they are targeting,” said Diamond.