Why is Saudi Arabia spending so much on sport?

Which sports are Saudi Arabia involved in?

Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund – known as its Public Investment Fund (PIF) – owns the LIV golf series and is looking to clinch a hugely controversial proposed merger with the PGA Tour after the unprecedented division and litigation in the game caused by its breakaway series.

PIF has controlling stakes in Newcastle United, alongside four Saudi domestic football teams – Al Hilal, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, and Al Ahli – which has raised concerns over whether that could give the Premier League club an unfair advantage when it comes to player loans or sales.

Although it recently sold its stake in the Formula 1 team owner McLaren Group, PIF has pumped hundreds of millions of pounds into the esports industry and has acquired a minority stake in the United States’ Professional Fighters League – a rival to the UFC – in a deal that will launch an MMA league and Super Fight division in Saudi Arabia.

From WWE, horse racing and football to golf, boxing and Formula 1, Saudi Arabia has become an epicentre of international sport, hosting 85 major events.

An Americas Cup sailing regatta and ATP tennis event took place in Jeddah recently, and the city is currently staging football’s Club World Cup, all of which were firsts for the kingdom.

Which other sports are Saudi Arabia interested in?

It has won the right to stage the finals of a revamped Asian Champions League football tournament, the 2034 Asian Games, 2027 Asian Cup and 2029 Winter Olympics, and is set to host the football 2034 World Cup.

Many believe an Olympic bid is only a matter of time.

There have been reports that PIF tried to buy Formula 1 and is interested in investing in Indian Premier League cricket.

There are also rumours it could be looking to create its own breakaway tennis tour, as it has done in golf.

Put simply, Saudi Arabia’s riches are transforming the sporting landscape, with a profound and controversial shift in influence gathering pace.

It seems Saudi Arabia has become the biggest story in world sport, presenting federations and athletes with remarkable financial opportunities but also bringing scrutiny.

Why is Saudi Arabia investing in sport?

It depends who you talk to.

Saudi Arabia sports minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal told BBC Sport recently that its unprecedented investment in sport – estimated at £5bn over the past three years – is to help inspire a youthful population to take up physical activity and exercise, open the country up to the international community, boost tourism, create jobs and provide sports federations with growth potential.

This echoes what Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said in September when he insisted that sport had helped increase his country’s GDP by 1% and that he was hoping for more growth from the sector.

Cristiano Ronaldo

That reinforced the sense that as a key part of his ‘Vision 2030’ strategy, which was launched in 2016, sport is being used to diversify the Saudi economy away from a dependency on oil.

However, many critics claim the investment is to gain legitimacy and deflect attention from controversy over Saudi Arabia’s human rights record and its impact on the environment, a practice known as ‘sportswashing’.

Other authoritarian states such as Russia, China and Qatar have also been accused of using sport in such a way in recent years.

Some campaign groups say the timing can be explained by Saudi Arabia using the hosting of sport to rebrand and reintegrate with the international community after the murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018 sparked condemnation.

Prince Abdulaziz denied any link with the country’s human rights record, saying sportswashing claims are “very shallow”. He said sport has been a driver for reforms and progress, pointing to the number of girls and women playing football.

Critics accept there have been some significant social reforms in Saudi Arabia in recent years – in 2018 they changed the law to allow women to drive and to attend football matches – but they also say there has also been evidence of more repression, such as a rise in the number of executions and in arrests for online dissent.

They also make the point that women’s rights are still restricted through the male guardianship system, and that homosexuality is illegal. There is also controversy over the restriction of free speech and the war in Yemen.

There are concerns about the safety of some fans at the 2034 World Cup and the treatment of migrant workers, which overshadowed the build-up to last year’s Qatar World Cup. Saudi Arabia says everyone will be welcome and that workers’ rights will not be an issue.

Many observers say a combination of factors is ultimately behind the country’s sports strategy and that international profile and prestige is at least part of the motivation, alongside domestic security, amid fears of a potential second ‘Arab Spring’.

Another reason could be intra-regional rivalry, with Saudi Arabia wanting to compete with neighbouring petro-states such as the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Bahrain, who have also established themselves as sporting hubs.

What about ‘greenwashing’ claims?

Some environmental campaign groups say Saudi sport investments, including in the form of various sponsorships by the country’s state-owned oil-giant Aramco, are designed to distract from its record when it comes to sustainability.

Aramco is a major sponsor of F1 and also has a global partnership with the International Cricket Council. It is reportedly in talks to be a top sponsor of Fifa.

Again, the Saudi authorities deny this despite a recent report finding 312 Saudi sponsorship deals across 21 sports, as well as multi-sport events.

The biggest oil producer in the world was reportedly blocking strong language on the phase-out of fossil fuels throughout the COP28 climate talks in Dubai.

Saudi Arabia has pledged to cut its carbon emissions to net zero by 2060 by shifting to renewable energy and planting billions of trees. Authorities can also point to the development of Neom, a proposed car-free, carbon-free eco-city that is part of Saudi Arabia’s pivot to go green.

But experts are concerned by the environmental impact and carbon footprint of staging the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia, especially after Prince Abdulaziz said the country was studying the possibility of hosting the tournament in summer despite extreme temperatures, with worries over the energy required for cooling systems and water desalination.

Infrastructure construction and the emissions from flights for a 48 team-tournament would also mean a significant carbon footprint, regardless of when it is held.

Professor Richard Betts, of the Met Office and Exeter University, said a 2034 summer World Cup “would see temperatures of around 50C, which will significantly increase the risk of heat stress for players, families and supporters”.

Maria Neira, environment, climate change and health director at the World Health Organisation, said: “When we look ahead, if ambitious decisions are not taken, extreme heat and polluted air will create very challenging conditions for the millions of people at a Saudi World Cup in 2034.”

–bbc.com