Saudi Arabia gobbles up the transfer market
The purchase shock by Cristiano Ronaldo (at Al-Nassr), at least at first, the classic whim of the oriental rich – the money once came from the States, then from China, today it mainly comes from Qatar and Saudi Arabia – seemed to be the freak show for their own people keep in mind (with all due respect to CR7, of course). But then something moved. As we anticipated in an article published in our columns in January, the Saudi government has confirmed its willingness to host the 2030 World Cup, in line with what has been dubbed “Vision 2030” that the enlightened government of Saudi Prince Bin Salman has planned time for the (re)start of the country on an international level.
In short, something similar to what Qatar has done (since 2017, the year of Neymar Junior’s arrival at Paris Saint-Germain), where it is no coincidence that they triumphantly hosted the 2022 World Cup. What is the key difference between? The project and The? That the transfer market is not there Location in EuropeBut rooted in Saudi Arabia. Al-Nassr (who bought Zyiech in addition to Ronaldo), Al-Hilal (a step away from Koulibaly, Ruben Neves has already bought for 55 million), Al-Ittihad (who bought Benzema and Kanté): not easy satellites, nor soft – Power tools (such as PSG) for Middle East power, but teams of them we will hear for a long time by 2030 (at least).
There’s even a who – how Massimo Marianella And Luca Marchetti to Sky Sport – explained the will of these clubs (all under the same owner, the PIF: Saudi public investment fund that has already bought Newcastle and Sheffield) and the Arab League in general, to emulate and even surpass the competition of the richest (and most beautiful?) league in the world: the Premier League. It is perhaps no coincidence that many of the above purchases come from the Terra d’Albione. However, to delve deeper into the subject, driven by fear and curiosity, we asked Alessio Postiglione, co-author of “Football, politics and power‘ (2023), a comprehensive (and interpretative) read on the subject.
