Details emerged that the Blades received the £3 million (€3.4 million) loan which they knew was financed by a member of the Bin Laden family, according to a barrister who is representing Prince Abdullah Bin Mosaad Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud in a bitter ownership struggle engulfing the North Yorkshire side. 

READ MORE: IAAF struggles to return $135,000 mistakenly transferred to Nigerian Athletics Federation

Longtime chairman Kevin McCabe sold 50 percent of the club to Prince Abdullah for a £10 million (€11.5 million) investment in 2013, though the 2017 loan was central to a breakdown in communications between the pair which has led the bitter ownership struggle all the way to the High Court. 

McCabe, who is a lifelong fan of Sheffield United, is keen to sell his stake in the club but is against the idea of the Prince taking complete control.

Prince Abdullah sourced the £3 million loan from an investor, Dr Rakan Al Harthy, via a company called Charwell Investments Limited. The loan was intended to be interest free and be paid back in April 2018, however McCabe contends that the loan was never meant to be repaid and was connected to the Prince in his role as Saudi Minister for Youth and Sports. 

Prince Abdullah insists that the loan was due to be repaid through sponsorships. 

Andreas Gledhill QC, representing Prince Abdullah, told the court on Thursday that McCabe "knew the money had come from another source, namely a member of the Bin Laden family."