Saudi Arabia Sportswashing: World Cups, Human Rights, and Ronaldo

Over the last two years, Saudi Arabia has revamped its influence in the sports community. The 6.3 billion dollars that have been spent on sports by Saudi Arabia is equivalent to the GDP of countries like Montenegro, Barbados, and Liechtenstein. Over the past five years, Saudi Arabia has partnered with the WWE, the PGA Tour, and even Lionel Messi, in an effort to make themselves recognizable in the sports industry. Athletes such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and N’Golo Kante now call the country home, after being offered lucrative wages to join the ambitious new Saudi soccer league, the Saudi Pro League. The icing on the cake will be in 2034 when they host the FIFA World Cup, after Australia, the only other competing country vying to host the competition, pulled out. However, this heavy investment in the sports industry has raised many eyebrows throughout sports and human rights organizations as a whole. The investment raised the concept of “sportswashing” once again, as many perceive it as a way for Saudi Arabia to cover up its horrific human rights record. 

The mass investment comes after the launch of Saudi Vision 2030. The project, launched by the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia, Mohammed bin Salman, aims to increase diversification economically, socially, and culturally, to move away from the oil-dependent economy. The vision is based on three core pillars: 1) A vibrant society in which all citizens can thrive and pursue their passions; 2) A thriving economy where everyone has the opportunity to succeed; and 3) An ambitious nation committed to efficiency and accountability at all levels, including building a government that is effective, transparent, and high-performing. A crucial factor in achieving these goals is through raising national pride, something that reached all-time highs during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar last year. The level of fanfare was so great in Saudi Arabia after they beat Argentina in their first match that the day after their victory was declared a national holiday. This level of pride and passion, when it came to soccer, showed those running the Saudi Vision that investing in their own league could reap huge benefits. This is where the large investments began to take place, as the Public Investment Fund began to put large amounts of their money into making their league one of the best in the world. 

The Public Investment Fund (PIF) had invested in four teams in the Saudi Pro League, Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli. Enter Cristiano Ronaldo. After being released by Manchester United, soccer superstar Ronaldo was presented at a sold-out King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh in December 2022. Signing a 600-million-dollar deal, the highest for a soccer player at the time, with Al-Nassr, and his arrival was only the beginning. In June 2023, French soccer stars N’Golo Kante and Karim Benzema signed two deals worth a collective 500 million dollars with Jeddah-based team Al-Ittihad. Other stars, such as Sadio Mané, Kalidou Kouliably, and Roberto Firmino would all make their way to the Saudi Pro League over the following few months, as all four teams, the PIF owned, spent colossal amounts of money. The final big name to arrive was Neymar, for nearly 100 million dollars to Al Hilal after they failed to sign teammate Kylian Mbappe for a world-record 300 million dollars. But how exactly were the Saudis able to bankroll such massive contracts? 

The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia is one of the richest sovereign wealth funds in the world, ranking 6th highest in the world. With approximately 594 billion dollars under management in 2022 and growing more every year, the PIF has seen a sharp increase since coming under the control of Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The fund went under a significant redevelopment in 2015, with the main purpose being to help bankroll the Saudi Vision 2030. A third of the fund consists of investments in multiple domestic-based companies, such as the Saudi Telecom Company and Oil Giant, Saudi Aramco. Despite its ties to companies and organizations outside the country, the PIF only deployed 21% of its resources to those companies, investing the other 79% into Saudi Arabia. An example of how this is displayed is by its cash infusions in the country’s sports industry and not just in the soccer industry. The fund has invested in a ten-year contract with the WWE, Formula 1 team Aston Martin, hosting the now annual Formula 1 event, the Saudi Grand Prix, and the LIV Golf Tour. These investments are set to be only the first of many, as Saudi Arabia looks to expand into other sports such as cricket and tennis. The PIF’s investments have not gone unnoticed, however, as the fund would come under investigation by the US government shortly after merging with the PGA tour. When merging the LIV and PGA tours, the US government investigated antitrust concerns within the organizations, as they tried to prevent any unfair monopoly within the golf industry. 

But why is everyone so concerned about this? Critics say that the investments made by the PIF, and Saudi Arabia as a whole, are just a massive move to “sportswash” the country. Sportswashing is a term used to describe practices of nations, individuals, groups, corporations, or governments using sports to improve their reputation, whilst covering up wrongdoings. Many human rights groups and advocates have accused Saudi Arabia of using their investment in sports and hosting major sports events to divert attention from their major human rights violations. Examples of these violations include killing hundreds of unarmed Ethiopian migrants, imprisoning women’s rights campaigners, executing as many as eighty-one people in a day last year, and the killing of journalists such as Jamal Khashoggi who spoke out against the Kingdom’s actions. Additional examples of past sportswashing in other countries include China hosting the 2008 and 2022 Olympic games amid accusations of genocide, Qatar hosting the 2022 World Cup to cover up Human Rights violations, and Russia annexing Crimea just weeks after hosting the 2014 Olympics. In an interview with Fox News earlier this year, Prince Mohammed Bin Salman stated, when questioned about sportswashing, “If sportswashing is going to increase my GDP by 1%, then we will continue doing sportwashing. I don’t care. I have a 1% growth in GDP from sports, and I am aiming for another 1.5%. Call it whatever you want.” The Crown Prince’s dismissal of this factor raised alarm bells around the world, as many human rights activists feared his pursuit of sports washing could lead to unprecedented violations in Saudi Arabia.  

In conclusion, the substantial investment made by Saudi Arabia into the sports industry has propelled the nation into the global spotlight. However, the legitimacy of the sporting competitions and the accusations of sportswashing, create a cloud over these investments. This crossing of sports and ethics will only ramp up further as the investments continue and the 2034 FIFA World Cup draws closer. 

By Luke Birch