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Saudi Arabia’s football clubs have spent more on players than those in almost every leading European league this summer, underlining the gulf state’s ambition to become a significant force in the world’s most popular sport.
Clubs in the Pro League have racked up a net spend, a figure that includes money made selling players, of about €430mn in the summer transfer window, according to transfermarkt.co.uk, which tracks signings.
Their outlay so far in the window, which opened in June and runs into September, trails only the €640mn net spend of clubs in the Premier League, the world’s wealthiest over the past decade.
While the Pro League has a history dating back decades, it gave the football world notice of the scale of its ambitions in December when Al Nassr signed Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo.
But spending by the league’s top clubs has been turbocharged since June, when Saudi Arabia’s $650bn sovereign wealth fund took control of Al Nassr along with Al Ittihad, Al Ahli and Al Hilal.
This week Al Nassr signed former Liverpool forward Sadio Mané from Bayern Munich for a reported €30mn, adding another Champions League winner to its squad. Former Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson became the highest-profile Premier League player to be recruited when he signed for Al-Ettifaq for €14mn.
The ultimate level of spending by the clubs is likely to be far higher because of the vast salaries on offer that has helped lure stars from Europe, including Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, who joined Al Ittihad from Real Madrid on a free transfer.
According to Transfermarkt, only Arsenal have a higher net spend so far than Al-Hilal’s €176mn. Its signings have included Portuguese midfield player Rúben Neves from Wolverhampton Wanderers for €40mn but the club failed in a €300mn effort to recruit French star Kylian Mbappé from Paris Saint-Germain.
After dominating the football transfer window in recent years, Premier League clubs are having to rapidly adjust to the entry of the Saudis.
“Saudi Arabia has changed completely the market,” Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said. “A few months ago, when Cristiano [Ronaldo] was the first one to go, no one could imagine how many top, top quality players would play in the Saudi league.”
“In the future there will be more and that’s why clubs need to be aware of what is happening.”
The vast outlay by Saudi clubs has led to accusations by human rights groups that the state’s efforts to improve its league amounts to “sports washing”, while some players have come under fire for signing up.
Saudi Arabia, which is set to host the Fifa Club World Cup in December, says investing in sports is a key part of its plan to modernise the country and diversify its economy beyond oil.
“A select number of quality players coming into the SPL is nothing to fear. Saudi clubs are investing in the game; that is good for all, creates new opportunities and takes the game truly global,” Bader Alkadi, Saudi vice-minister of sports, told the Financial Times.
Despite the Pro League’s financial firepower, a senior executive at a Premier League club said concerns that the league could build an audience to rival European leagues had been “a bit exaggerated” and questioned how the SPL would settle on a sustainable business model.
Additional reporting by Samer Al-Atrush in Dubai
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