Can oil-money buy football dreams? As European football season beckons, the cash-rich shadow of Saudi Pro League looms large | Football News

It was Napoleon who had said, “whoever possesses Constantinople ought to rule the world.” the end of June 10 – in pure footballing terms – it was Manchester City. Europe has, for long, been the heartbeat of club football. And City, the champions of England, were finally the champions of Europe. It was the last piece of silverware missing in their trophy cabinet and now, they had it. Making them unequivocally, the best football club in the world. Maybe even of all times. But just as the days rolled and we moved closer to the beginning of another football year around the sun, Pep Guardiola’s juggernaut wasn’t the big topic of conversation in football circles. The departure of club captain Ilkay Gundogan and Riyad Mahrez wasn’t an issue. The arrivals of the likes of Josko Gvardiol and Mateo Kovacic had made sure it wasn’t. The ball was out of City’s court anyway. Enter the Saudi Pro League (SPL).
With the 2023/24 European football season beginning on the weekend, the shadow of Saudi Arabia looms large over the horizon. SPL, which was not even a peripheral name just a year back, burst onto the scene with the acquisition of Criano Ronaldo last December, forcing the world to take notice. As hard as it may be to accept for purs, Ronaldo’s “in a year the Saudi league will overtake the Turkish league and Dutch league” claim isn’t outlandish.
As the summer transfer window rolled in this year, the full extent of the Kingdom and its infinite fiscal pull came into sharp focus. An exodus had begun with top European talents from Chelsea, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, and even Manchester City. Big ticket names from Karim Benzema to N’Golo Kante, Sadio Mane to Marcelo Brozovic, Riyad Mahrez to even Steven Gerrard, flexing that the potential of the pull extended to managers as well. The biggest of them all though, wasn’t even a signing.
A mind-splitting €300 million-a-year bid for Kylian Mbappe was indeed the game changer. It was evident, there was no roof to the ceiling in the Saudi Kingdom. Unlike their European counterparts, Saudi clubs were not bound the UEFA’s rules of expenditure; RIP, financial fair play. The salvo which was fired after Ronaldo’s transfer turned into a one-sided bidding war and there was nothing European clubs could do about it.

😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂 https://t.co/hKhqYXC7tH
— Kylian Mbappé (@KMbappe) July 24, 2023
The money on offer was unlike anything that the footballing world had seen or heard of before. It was, after all, coming from the sovereign wealth fund (PIF) that owned 75% of clubs like Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli, Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal, giving the four access to limitless financial leverage. Which is why SPL seems less likely to end up on the path that the Chinese Super League has over the years owing to their private firm ownership. It is even less likely to turn out as solely a retirement plan for some of Europe’s finest in the fag end of their careers. Names like Ruben Neves, Allan Saint-Maximin, and Franck Kessie (all 26) in the Saudi portfolio say so.
What’s the future of European football?
Even as he raved about the Saudi league, the five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo would also state that he won’t ever return to Europe since it ‘has lost a lot of quality’. “The only valid one and still doing good is the Premier League. They’re way ahead of all the other leagues.” It’s pretty hard to argue with the Portuguese after watching last season’s Bundesliga title race conclusion. No matter how well Borussia Dortmund did to drag the league to the final day of the season, the inevitability of another Bayern Munich title loomed large in the picture. Which is what happened.

The French League has long been reigned Paris Saint Germain – funded another middle-east benefactor – who have won nine Ligue 1 titles over the last 11 years. Even though the Italian Serie A offers a glimmer of competition with three different winners in three seasons, they are almost always cash-strapped. Milan for instance had to let go of Sandro Tonali despite finishing fourth in the league and securing Champions League football after a semifinal finish. And who did they sell their star midfielder to? Newcastle United, owned *checks notes*, the Saudi PIF.
In hindsight though, the European clubs have no one else to blame for this sudden influx of cash in the sport. PSG and Manchester City have been inflating the market with huge amounts spent over single signings for a while now. Manchester United and Real Madrid, from even before them. Neymar from Barcelona to PSG for €222m in 2017 immediately springs to mind. Jack Grealish for €117.5m from Aston Villa to Man City in 2021 and Declan Rice for £105m to Arsenal from West Ham in 2023 continue that trend.
So, where does it leave European football and its cast in the fight for relevance? For the first time in 21 years, it will go on without both CR7 and Lionel Messi. Even though the latter chose MLS, Saudi had put it all out to persuade him into joining the old foe. As was the case with one of the heir apparent in Mbappe. Maybe it was his boyhood dream to play for Real Madrid that held him. To wear the colours once worn his idol at his prime. To win a continental competition they had made their own, over years and years of almost-mythical performances. Under the beaming floodlights of a stadium that was no less than a football cathedral. But when a mind-boggling offer comes calling, how many would keep that dream? In the end, isn’t that what the Saudis can buy?

Top 8 buys Saudi football clubs
-Four SPL clubs -Al Ahli, Al Nassr, Al Hilal, Al-Ittihad – have been bankrolled $620 billion Public Investment Fund (PIF) ahead of 2023/24 season.
-The four have spent a total of over €420m transfer fee on arrivals in this window. (Al Nassr: €77.6m, Al Hilal: €178m, Al Ahli: €93.2m, Al Ittihad: €75.8
-Here are the top-8 buys from the SPL clubs this summer:

Karim Benzema from Real Madrid to Al Ittihad (Free)
N’Golo Kante from Chelsea to Al Ittihad (Free)
Riyad Mahrez from Manchester City to Al Ahli (€35m)
Sadio Mane from Bayern Munich to Al Nassr (€30m)
Fabinho from Liverpool to Al Ittihad (€46.70m)
Jordan Henderson from Liverpool to Al Ettifaq (€14m)
Roberto Firmino from Liverpool to Al Ahli (Free)
Edouard Mendy from Chelsea to Al Ahli (€18.50m)