Impact Of Saudi Arabia’s Big Investment In the world of Sports
Impact on Saudi Arabia’s global status has been significant, with sports playing a major role. Over the past few years, the nation has invested heavily across various sports.
All Arab nations have found sports to rebuild their reputations. Qatar hosted the 2022 World Cup, adding more pressure on its neighbouring countries. Saudi Arabia has taken many steps, and here is a look at its investment in different sports.
Impact on Football
Saudi Arabia shocked everyone by bringing Cristiano Ronaldo into the Saudi Pro League. Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) started with the acquisition of English club Newcastle United. The Magpies spent over $400 million on transfers. In 2023, PIF took over four Saudi Clubs. This was just a start to a very big project.
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Cristiano Ronaldo came and attracted other global superstars to the league. The likes of Neymar, Benzema, Kante, Mane, and a few others decided to join these clubs. There was a massive spending of $907 million. This was the second highest net spend on transfers.
In addition to this, Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 FIFA World Cup. They have also hosted Italian and Spanish Super Cups. There has been a lot of investment in football.
Saudi Arabia’s state oil firm, Aramco, is the biggest sponsor of FIFA. Both parties have agreed on a massive deal of around $100 million a year.
Cricket
Cricket in Saudi Arabia is not a very popular sport. The UAE has focused more on this game. However, Aramco has become a big sponsor of ICC. Their logos are seen all over the ICC events.
Saudi Tourism has also been a big part of the Indian Premier League. This is one of the biggest leagues that is organised globally.
Formula 1
Formula 1 is a growing sport. Saudi Arabia also became a part of this growth by hosting a race in 2021. They joined the likes of Bahrain, Qatar and Abu Dhabi in the World Championship.
In 2021, PIF brought a $ 400 million stake in the McLaren F1 team. They sold it two years later. In addition to this, there has been a few investments made in Formula E racing.
Tennis
Tennis is also gaining popularity in Saudi Arabia. Some top players have played exhibition matches, leading to a good promotion. They will now aim to host ATP events shortly.
Wrestling & MMA
WWE came to Saudi Arabia and hosted one of the biggest sporting events in the nation. In 2018, the company announced a 10-year strategic partnership with the Ministry of Sports. Now, WWE hosts two events annually. Women wrestlers are also allowed to compete but have to wear bodysuits.
UFC has also hosted a couple of events in Riyadh. The recent event took place on 1st February 2025.
Esports
Esports is gaining a lot of popularity. Saudi Arabia took advantage of this situation and announced that an Esports World Cup would be held every year, starting from 2024. There is a huge prize pot for the players and Saudi attempts to become a powerhouse in E-gaming.
