Saudi Arabia has a clear goal: to open up to the world, increase its visibility throughout the planet and also the number of tourists visiting the country. At that time, he had already presented his “Vision 2030” project for a “transformative social and economic reforms that open Saudi Arabia to the world”. An opening with one of its biggest doors in the sport.
The clear example is his bet on the Dakar, with a multi-million dollar 10-year contract to host one of the most iconic and most followed races in the world, perfect for showcasing spectacular scenery and diverse terrain, as well as the most touristic its sites; At the first Saudi Dakar, in 2020, the press was encouraged to visit the famous ‘Elephant Stone’, just one example of its tourist offer. They also bet on many other sports: The Saudi Golf League, Formula 1 in Jeddah or Formula E are just a few examples. They need to grow their football.
According to sources consulted by MD in Saudi Arabia, the first thing the country should do is create and execute a growth plan of his football base. After the team’s participation in World Cups from 1994 to 2006 consecutively, Arabia failed to qualify for the 2010 and 2014 editions. Then they began to activate a growth project to return to the World Cup. They achieved this more with their classification in 2018 and 2022, in addition to leaving a good image of football by sharing a group with Qatar with Argentina, which they beat and eventually became champions.
The 2030 World Cup, goal
The next big goal is the home of World Cup 2030, with a joint bid with Egypt and Greece. The sources consulted by the MD believe that it will be difficult that, after Qatar organized the 2022 event, they handed over to Saudi Arabia the celebration of the biggest event on the planet just 8 years later, so the inclusion of Egypt and Greece in The candidacy is a great weapon to achieve your goal. is first World Cup which will be played simultaneously on three continents: Africa, Asia and Europe.
To achieve this, it was clear to them that they had to execute another previous plan: one that greatly increased the value of their league. They want the eyes of the world to look at Saudi stadiums. I ate? easy: included big names “We are doing what Qatar did on its day 10 years ago Guardiola, Xavi and other players”, a Saudi source pointed out to this newspaper.
‘Pushed’ by the state
For this, the Condition It will feed money to its most powerful clubs to sign big stars. It will be exactly as it happened Christian Ronaldo, first star to land in Saudi Arabia a few days ago, signing for one of its biggest clubs, Al Nassr. For this, according to this information, the Saudi State directly helped Al Nassr with a financial contribution through the only sponsorship that appeared behind CR7 in its presentation: ‘Saudi, Welcome to Arabia’. Namely, Tourism of Saudi Arabia.
The next step is to obtain, by the same formula, a Leo Messi for him to join the other club in Riyadh, Al-Hilal, the great rival of Cristiano’s Al-Nassr. The State wants Messi in said club to make a rivalry and for the world to see it but, above all, its main goal is to increase the level of a league “which is considered the most competitive, the highest level and equal to the countries Arab. And the most frequent.”
To bring Messi, money will not be a problem. There are rumors in Saudi Arabia that Al-Hilal are willing to pay him 300 million dollars a year. But the matter does not end here. Cristiano-Messi will only be the icing on the cake. The League needs more weight players. For this reason, as MD learned, apart from the rumors about an interest in Busquets by Al Nassr, the club said it wanted to make an offer for another big name: Sergio Ramos. In addition, the interest of this club and its rival in Riyadh, Al-Hilal, for Luka Modric is discussed.
MD also spoke with the head of communications for Al-Nassr a few days ago at the Dakar camp in Riyadh. Only one football question is allowed Rudy Garcia club coach, who visited the camp. He was sure that he didn’t need more than those questions for the world to know about Al-Nassr. “It’s now a club that’s known around the world.” They believe it, and now they want to back it up by hiring other big stars.
the new model
Saudi Arabia knows that it cannot always survive on its main source of financing, oil. Since 2020, the first time that the Dakar in this country, until now 2023, a change has been noticed. And that’s what they also want to build on having world-class cracks like Cristiano or Messi.
In Arabia it is remembered how much the arrival of Dubai helped the growth of Maradona as coach of Al Wasl of the United Arab Emirates and later, in his role as Dubai’s honorary sports ambassador. Now they want to follow that model in Cristiano, Messi, Ramos, Busquets, Modric and company. They will do everything to increase their tourism, grow and change their economic model. That happens through football and the World Cup. That goes to the boots of CR7 and Messi.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Rose Herman and I work as an author for Today Times Live. My expertise lies in writing about sports, a passion of mine that has been with me since childhood. As part of my job, I provide comprehensive coverage on everything from football to tennis to golf.
