After Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Arabia seeks collaboration with Lionel Messi
Curiously, Argentina and Portugal are also competing with other countries to host the World Cup.
After Cristiano Ronaldo, Saudi Arabia is seeking collaboration with Lionel Messi, as well as with large multinational companies, to promote its candidacy to host the 2030 World Cup, a source close to the operation told AFP.
Following the model of Qatar, the host of the 2022 World Cup, and the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, the world's leading oil exporter, has been organizing major sporting events in recent years to diversify its economy and improve its image, which has been affected by accusations of fierce repression against dissidents in this ultra-conservative kingdom.
"Saudi Arabia is finalizing agreements with major companies to sponsor its bid to host the World Cup," a source close to the operation, who requested anonymity as they are not authorized to speak to the media, told AFP.
According to this source, the powerful Saudi sovereign wealth fund, PIF (Public Investment Fund), is behind the operation, as it is with numerous international investment projects in the country, to sign collaboration agreements with major brands in the communications, internet, and tourism sectors.
Riyadh intends to "announce its candidacy in a few weeks," said the source.
The Saudis are also negotiating with the Argentine soccer superstar Lionel Messi, who has already lent his image in the past for a tourism promotion campaign in the country.
Recently signed by a club in the local league, the other star player, Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo, will receive 200 million euros to play in the Saudi league and an identical additional amount to promote the candidacy of the oil monarchy, according to an anonymous source from his club, Al-Nassr.
Interestingly, Ronaldo and Messi could promote the Saudi candidacy when two other officially announced bids include Portugal, Spain, and Ukraine on one side, and Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Chile on the other.
An Egyptian official stated in September that their country wanted to submit a joint bid to host the 2030 World Cup, alongside Saudi Arabia and Greece.
In early February, Prince Abdelaziz ben Turki al-Faisal, the Minister of Sports, told AFP that his country had not officially submitted a bid, but that "anything is possible."
Saudi Arabia will host the Asia Cup for the first time in its history in 2027, a competition considered as a test for a potential second World Cup in an Arab country. AFP