The World of Soccer: A Brief Overview of Recent Deals and Their Motives

My younger brother and sister are soccer fanatics, so despite my attempts to avoid the subject, our dinner table conversations often drift towards the realm of the sport. Often, I try to tune out the ever-lasting conversations; however, on one recent evening, I found myself sucked into the discussion. The topic? Saudi Arabia’s recent contracts with European league soccer superstars. The conversation left me longing for more information, and here is what I learned:

Since  June, the Saudi Pro League (SPL) has been rapidly signing contracts and essentially “buying” many big name players from many higher-ranking European teams. With the $620 billion used from the Public Investment Fund, it seems Saudi Arabia is attempting to stake a claim in the international sports world. The SPL has signed contracts with players such as Fabihno from Liverpool with a contract of $51.33 million, Neymar from PSG with a contract of $98.6 million, and Aleksandar Mitrovic from Fulham with a contract of $58.6 million. Some players, such as Roberto Filimino (Liverpool) and Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), signed deals with a free transfer, but are still going to be making millions of dollars. 

There is much speculation as to what the motives are behind these recent purchases. Some critics argue that this is an attempt by Saudi Arabia to create a more positive image and gain more validity from the world as a country by engaging in an international, friendly, and competitive field. To that end, other critics argue that the contracts have had the exact opposite effect than was intended by the leaders, as the more money that is spent on soccer, the more criticism and discussion revolves around the misdoings of the country as it pertains to their human rights policies, their legal system and their actions, which are often perceived as unjust by the eyes of the world. Historically, the country has perhaps not dedicated enough resources to fix their human rights issues, and many activists, analysts and politicians have raised the question of where the money should be going, in terms of improving the lives of citizens. However, there is also something to be said about the specific criticism of this country. If any other European country decided to buy and sign contracts with star players, there would probably not be as much backlash from the rest of the world. This is why some critics argue that the real root of the disapproval is blatant racism towards the Saudi Arabians and other Middle Eastern countries who are doing the same. At the end of the day, no one can say for sure if the country is simply trying to prove that they also belong in the world of European sports, or if there is a strategic component to try to better their image through artificial means. 

There is also an economic aspect to this sudden extreme funding of sport leagues in Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is well known for their economy running on their market of oil as a natural resource. However, knowing that this resource cannot last forever, the leadership has turned to sports and other forms of entertainment in order to diversify their economy and make sure that the money stays within their borders. Furthermore, these deals are an attempt to create a new flow of money and wealth for the country in a field other than oil, in order to attempt and secure a more stable financial future for Saudi Arabia. 

Furthermore, there is a huge interest and fanbase within the Saudi Arabian population for soccer. Following the success from the Qatar World Cup and the resulting increase in tourism, perhaps the motives of these purchases are to not only see more representation of Middle Eastern athletes, but also to keep the money within the borders of the country, rather than letting other countries profit off of the enthusiasm of Saudi Arabian citizens. Perhaps the motive is to simply create a home-base entertainment for a widely beloved sport in the country and the intent is to benefit the citizens of the country. 

 Ultimately, the consensus of specialists in the field is that the three main motives for these recent deals are: Saudi Arabia’s need to diversify the economy and secure a stable financial future, to change the world image of the country from lack of human rights to sport success, and to simply build up the entertainment industry in the country following their huge success in the Qatar World Cup in respect to their huge population that takes an interest in soccer. The truth is, no one really could know for certain, but it is important to question your previous assumptions and perceptions with a more in depth look at all perspectives. 

If you are still interested, here is an interview with Kaveh Solhekol, Sky Sport News chief reporter, on the topic.