Saudi Arabian Football for the last month has dominated the Football Headlines. They are coughing up enormous amounts of money and they are attracting some of the biggest names in World Football. It all began with Cristiano Ronaldo deciding to join Al-Nassr in the month of December last year after terminating his contract with Manchester United. Ronaldo is currently the highest-paid player in the world, with Al-Nassr offering him €200 million a year. Karim Benzema has also joined former teammate Cristiano Ronaldo in the Saudi Pro League by signing with Al Ittihad. But Ronaldo and Benzema aren’t the only big names who now call Saudi Arabia their home. A number of big names such as N’Golo Kante, Marcelo Brozovic, Roberto Firmino, Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy, and Ruben Neves are some of the players who have decided to follow the same route as Ronaldo and Benzema by signing for clubs in the Saudi Pro League. Let’s have a look at why players are quitting European Football in favor of the Saudi Pro League.
Why are famous Footballers now heading to Saudi Arabia?
The Simple answer as to why players are going to Saudi is money. The Saudi pro league clubs are offering huge amounts of money to players in the form of wages in order to attract them to play for their clubs and not many people are gonna reject a huge paycheck especially in their 30s. But other factors like religion also play a huge part in influencing players to play in Saudi. Karim Benzema the former Real Madrid number 9 and the reigning Ballon d’Or holder during his official unveiling press conference said: “Well because I am Muslim and it’s a Muslim country. I’ve always wanted to live there.” He said that he had previously made the Umrah religious pilgrimage twice in Saudi Arabia and that his family was eager to relocate there, which is the nation that is home to the two holiest sites in Islam, Mecca, and Medina. Another transfer that shocked the world was the transfer of Ruben Neves to Al-Hilal. The Portuguese was constantly linked to Barcelona and was being targetted to replace the aging Sergio Busquets but the Catalan club was not able to meet the financial demands of the Wolves and instead opted to sign İlkay Gündoğan from Man City which made the Portuguese sign for Al-Hilal.
What source of funding do the Saudi Clubs have?
In the rest of the world, football clubs are often private businesses. They must make money in order to spend it, or else they risk being saddled with the kind of debt that will ultimately cause terrible problems for them. In June 2023, Saudi Pro League’s Big 4 Al-Ittihad, Al-Nassr, Al-Ahli and Al-Hilal were all collectively taken over by the country’s Sovereign Wealth Fund PIF(Public Investment Fund). This means these clubs now have access to near limitless financial resources and already able to offer wages way in excess of all but the very Top European Clubs. The PIF Also owns an 80% stake in Newcastle United.
For what reason is Saudi Arabia burning through such a lot of cash on big names?
Because Saudi Pro League teams do not often play in the Champions League or face teams like Bayern Munich and Real Madrid, they sought another option to develop their lineups. By using the country’s near bottomless pit of development money to bring in some of Football’s biggest names they immediately improve both the quality and the status of the League. Bringing in Ronaldo and Benzema, both Ballon d’Or winners, would demonstrate to other older players that the Saudi Pro League is a genuine choice for an ultimate destination like the MLS or Chinese Super League.
