A human rights organization has confirmed that Saudi club Al-Nasr has made a deal to contract the famous Portuguese player Cristiano Ronaldo to represent a step in sports washing in the Kingdom. One of the world’s most famous soccer players Cristiano Ronaldo Saudi went to Saudi Arabia’s capital Riyadh and received the contract in an extravagant ceremony. A lot of excited children were seen in the sporting event wearing yellow and blue jerseys.
Saudi Arabia has gained success in attracting the five-time Ballon d’Or winner on a two-year contract with Al Nassr FC. Hiring a soccer player is the latest move by the Gulf monarchy to step up their game in the sports washing. Saudi Arabia has been spending millions for their sporting ambitions and wants to cover up the violent crimes seemingly at any cost.
Ronaldo Will Earn Millions A Year
According to the latest reports Ronaldo will earn an estimated $200 million a year with Al Nassr. This will make him the world’s highest-paid soccer player. The 37-year-old has signed with Al Nassr and will be earning big money in the future. Soon after he signed the contract the club’s Instagram page gained over 5.3 million new followers.
The official website of the club was also inaccessible after exceeding its bandwidth limit because the sudden surge in traffic stopped new visitors from entering the website. The hashtag #HalaRonaldo – Hello, Ronaldo in Arabic was also trending Middle East on Twitter. According to experts, recruitment in Saudi Arabia is a part of the effort made by the kingdom to diversify its sources of revenue. The country also wants to become a serious player in the international sporting scene.
The Kingdom Has Been Accused Of Sportswashing
The recent contract between Cristiano Ronaldo and the Al Nassr club is the latest move by the kingdom to shore up its image after it got tarnished in the 2018 dismemberment. The Kingdom has also been accused of killing the Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi. The Saudi agents have been involved in a devastating war that started in Yemen in 2015. Critics have accused the kingdom of “sportswashing,” as they want to burnish their reputation through sport.
“I think Saudi Arabia has recognized a couple of years ago that to be a powerful nation internationally, you cannot just rely on hard power,” Danyel Reiche, a visiting research fellow and associate professor at Georgetown University Qatar, shared.
“You also need to invest in soft power, and the case of Qatar shows that this can work pretty well,” he said, adding that Saudi Arabia is following in the Qatari approach with sport, but with a delay of around 25 years.
Ronaldo’s Contract With Al Nassr Club Criticized By Rights Group
Ronaldo’s recent contract with Saudi Arabia is being criticized by rights groups. The country has urged soccer players to sign the big contract because they want to draw attention to human rights issues.
“Saudi Arabia has an image problem,” especially since Khashoggi’s killing, says Reiche. But the kingdom’s recent investments in sports and entertainment are “not about sportswashing but about developing the country, social change and opening up to the world.” Said an expert.
Saudi Arabia is also bidding on the 2030 World Cup with Egypt and Greece. The kingdom’s tourism ministry has revealed that it has not submitted an official bid. Ronaldo’s deal with Al Nassr will help to boost the kingdom’s bid to pursue it.
Another way Saudi Arabia can benefit from Ronaldo’s acquisition is that it can improve commercial performance as this collaboration will attract further international talent. The Kingdom wants to be seen as the best. They want to stand as legitimate members of the international football community.
The Saudi Minister of Sports, Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, commented on Al-Nasr club’s contract with soccer player Ronaldo: “We will support the rest of our clubs for qualitative deals with international stars soon”, which confirms the direct relationship of the Saudi government to this deal or something similar in the future.
Ronaldo’s Deal A Shield To Whitewash The Bad Reputation Of The Kingdom
When the deal with Ronaldo was concluded, people in the Kingdom were suffering from unprecedented persecution on more than one level. Saudi Arabia has carried out the largest massacre in the country’s history and killed 81 detainees at once in March 2022.
There are currently 60 political detainees that are threatened with death. These detainees also include minors. Saudi Arabia is expected to carry out a horrific massacre involving dozens. The persecution of women will be reaching unbridled levels. The Kingdom has also carried out missions against women for writing some ordinary opinions on social networks.
In recent years, Saudi Arabia has been making large-scale forced displacement. The leaders are even going on a level of brutal torture in prisons and have escalated women from the freedom of expression. All human rights defenders are also targeted as the Saudi authorities have doubled the cases of enforced disappearance. There are several immigrants from Saudi Arabia that are facing increasing escape repression.
Huge amounts of money are being spent, on the deal with Ronaldo. This deal was one of the costliest in sports history. The deal was made when people are living in a stressful economic situation. The number of poor has increased, and several types of taxes and fees have accumulated in an unprecedented way.
