Newcastle chief sets date to be world's best which won't take 'as long as you think'

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Newcastle will be "in the debate about being the top club in the world " in five years claims their chief executive David Hopkinson.

The Magpies have been upwardly mobile since 2021, when they were taken over by their Saudi owners, who have poured huge sums into the squad. Back then Newcastle were in the relegation zone, but have since claimed the Carabao Cup and qualified for the Champions League twice.

Hopkinson, who moved to St James’ Park from Madison Square Garden Sports in September, admits that success is fully determined by trophies as the club go in search of more silverware.

Manchester City claimed the Premier League four years after their takeover - which is the same amount of time the Saudis have been in charge at Newcastle. They've made huge strides, but still have many milestones to tick, yet their chief executive insists they can be a world leader before too long.

He told The Times : “By 2030, I see this club being in the debate about being the top club in the world. That’s where I see us by 2030 - and that kind of progress doesn’t take as long as you might think. What it takes is clarity of conviction.

"First off, we need to be totally aligned about the fact that that’s what we want to do. We have to have the courage to ignore those that doubt us, and even those that laugh at us, because there will be some. We want more cups. That is how you define success. Eddie (Howe) is special. My job is to help Eddie succeed in his job.

“Can Newcastle win the Premier League? Yeah, of course. Why not? Our job is to set ourselves up to be perennial contenders. This is a tough league, and the correlation between points earned and revenue is undeniable, so, again, so much of this is self-help and doing everything we can to try to increase our ability to compete by driving revenues.

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Hopkinson insists that St James' Park will be their base "for years" amid continued talk of a potential move away. They could still build a new stadium in Leazes Park whilst their training ground is also in need of development.

The Newcastle chief believes the timeframe is necessary to put a plan in place. Newcastle finished second back in the 1990s but haven't been the champions of England for almost a century.

“I love the reference to 2030 because if it’s not time-bound, then it’s fantasy," he said. "Everything we’re talking about as we have articulated the transformation plan has to be time-bound. We’re not going to win by accident. We’re going to win because we’ve been thoughtful and strategic about the organisation we’ve constructed, whose sole purpose is to win.”

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