The Telegraph’s chief sports writer, Oliver Brown, says he was refused access to Saturday’s heavyweight world title bout after writing an opinion piece on Friday which was critical of Saudi Arabia’s involvement in the sport.
The Football Association, which owns Wembley, is understood to be disappointed at the treatment Brown received. Reporters have been urged to contact the governing body should similar disputes arise in the future and it will endeavour to resolve them.
However, promoters will still continue to have the final say on the matter under the venue hire agreements they sign with the FA.
Brown had described the occasion as a “brazen assertion of the Saudis’ sporting supremacy in the heart of London” and said the British capital had been transformed into a “Saudi Disneyland”.
He said he was contacted after the article was published by a public relations executive who asked if they should assume from his “opinions” that he no longer wished to attend the fight.
Brown replied to say he was still perfectly happy to attend and to discuss the article with the PR executive, but his offer of a conversation was not taken up.
He did not become aware of any issues with his accreditation until he arrived at the stadium to collect his wristband. Individuals present told him he was being denied entry and that there was nothing they could do about it.
Queensberry Promotions, which administered the accreditation for the fight, has not commented on the matter but sources close to the organisation insist it had nothing to do with the decision to deny Brown entry to the fight, and that it would never bar a journalist based on any opinion expressed.
The Sports PR Company, which reposted multiple social media posts about the fight over the weekend, has been contacted for comment.
PA has been told that the event was oversubscribed, with 326 accreditation requests and only 186 spaces, but that all national news titles were represented.
Saudi Arabia has become heavily involved in the staging and promotion of boxing in recent years and is becoming increasingly influential and powerful in a number of other sports.
The Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) is the majority owner of Premier League football club Newcastle, and the country is set to be awarded the right to host the 2034 men’s football World Cup later this year.
The PIF also bankrolls the LIV Golf tour, which features some of the sport’s star names.
Felix Jakens, the head of priority campaigns and individuals at risk at human rights organisation Amnesty International UK, said: “We know how the Saudi authorities regard journalists who step out of line with the terrible example of Jamal Khashoggi’s grisly murder, and it’s disturbing to hear these reports of a British journalist being blocked from doing their job because of their reporting.
“The dark underside to the glitz of Saudi sportswashing is a country ruled by fear, where freedom of expression is routinely denied and even mild criticism of the authorities can land you with a lengthy prison sentence.
“Sports journalists covering everything from boxing to football, golf, snooker and tennis have rightly called out the big-money Saudi sportswashing project – this is necessary journalism, not grounds for being excluded from a sporting event.”