By Kaviesh Kinger
Billboards across Riyadh earlier this year exclaimed ‘Hala Ronaldo’, welcoming Cristiano Ronaldo to Saudi Arabia. Newspages crowned Ronaldo as the new ‘Prince of Arabia’. Excitement ensued as social media pages were taken by storm in the Middle East, with #HalaRonaldo becoming a popular phrase for many in the Gulf. ‘Hala’, translating to ‘hi’ or ‘welcome’ in Arabic, serves as the perfect representation of the expansion of Arabic culture into the mainstream through sports.
In early January 2023, Cristiano Ronaldo signed a two year deal as captain for the Saudi football club, Al Nassr as well as playing as a forward. The infamous Portuguese star is captain for the Portuguese national team and played for Manchester United. The all-time highest international goalscorer, Ronaldo is perhaps one of the biggest names in football alongside Lionel Messi. Joining Al Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo was made the world’s highest paid soccer player, earning US$200 million a year. Within less than a day, Al Nassr’s social media pages skyrocketed with 3.4 million more followers on Twitter and a 400% increase on Instagram.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s entrance into Al Nassr is not the Public Investment Fund’s (Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund) only activity in the sports industry. Rather, this is an ambitious move by the country to expand and diversify its economy and soft power, a mission the government itself has vocalised. Saudi Arabia’s ‘Vision 2030’ is a multi-pronged approach to diversifying and expanding the oil-dependent nation’s economy with various programs. One of which is the ‘Public Investment Fund program’ attempting to make “bold, broad, and wise investments” according to the Vision 2030 webpage.
It is of no doubt that sports fits perfectly into this mission. Saudi Arabia’s Sports Minister, Prince Abdulaziz has acknowledged that the country’s ultimate goal is to host the Olympic Games to news agency AFP. This mission comes with an expansive investment into sports, with some of the biggest names in football joining Saudi clubs such as Al Ahli, Al Ittihad and Al Hilal, including Neymar, Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante. Saudi also owns an 80% stake in Newcastle United, and is hosting the 2029 Asian Winter Games and the 2034 Asian Games.
Contextualising this investment into Saudi Arabia’s position both internationally and regionally gives far greater insight. After the successful 2022 FIFA World Cup was hosted by Qatar, the first Arab country to do so in history, analysts have begun describing Qatar’s authority in football as a pathway to expanding soft power and cooperation. Indeed, ties between other countries in the GCC and Qatar thawed due to the World Cup. Just like Saudi, Qatar also has a ‘Vision 2030’ which cites investments in sports-related areas as an important strategy to transform Qatar into a sporting hub. Other areas in the region have also utilised sports and culture widely to expand their international position such as Abu Dhabi, owning Manchester City and hosting the Louvre Abu Dhabi.
Indeed, it may be that Saudi Arabia is following this pattern of growth. In an emerging modern world, Saudi Arabia is still a traditional nation, with deep ties to culture and religion for Muslims globally. Developing this deep respect for tradition alongside a greater integration into the global economy serves as a tricky balance for Saudi Arabia, one which sports may help to stabilise. For example, Al Nassr’s recent advertisement for Saudi Arabia’s national day displayed Ronaldo in a traditional Saudi dress performing an Arabic dance. Additionally, Ronaldo’s partner, Georgina Rodríguez, worked with Saudi perfume company Laverne on an advertisement, discussing the warmth of Saudi culture and values. By merging Saudi culture with iconic names in sports, Saudi investment in the industry can give greater return by way of tourism. From 2014 to 2023, Saudi has spent more than US $1.5 billion on sporting deals, with its sports event industry estimated to grow to US$ 3.3 billion by 2024.
Greater investment into sports fits into Saudi Arabia’s agenda more widely on attracting tourism. Recent efforts such as investment into the Red Sea and Amaala tourist destinations, as well as an explicit acceptance of LGBT visitors on the Saudi Tourism website all display this. In 2021, 63.83 million people visited Saudi as tourists, a number that climbed to 77.84 million in 2022.
Through a heavy emphasis on sports, Saudi Arabia may be taking a page out of Qatar’s book, expanding its cultural reach and curating a comfortable balance between economic openness and traditional governance and values.
Illustration by Francesca Corno
