Axios

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is now the new de facto owner of Newcastle United Football Club.

Driving the news: Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund completed the deal Thursday after an 18-month delay.

Eighteen former NBA players on Thursday were charged with defrauding the league's health and welfare benefit plan out of nearly $4 million.

Driving the news: The indictment says that the players engaged in a "scheme" to defraud the plan, which resulted in them submitting "false and fraudulent claims" that totaled $3.9 million, of which they received approximately $2.5 million.

The NWSL is set to return Wednesday night to a radically different landscape than when players last took the field 10 days ago.

Catch up quick: Two coaches (Paul Riley, NC Courage; Richie Burke, Washington Spirit) were fired last week amid allegations of harassment and sexual coercion.