The footballing world was taken aback when Al Nassr, a Saudi pro league club signed Cristiano Ronaldo one the best footballers of all time in their efforts to grow football in the country and so far the results are very positive.
The Saudi Pro League became the 10th most valuable league in the world and it’s a no-brainer that Cristiano Ronaldo has been a major reason behind this rise.
In the summer transfer window, the Saudi Pro League spent a total of more than 800 million euros and signed superstars like Karim Benzema, Neymar Junior, Riyad Mahrez, and many top talents from Europe.
Saudi club Al Hilal even made a world record bid of around 300 million Euros to Paris Saint Germain for their French superstar Kylian Mbappe, but Mbappe rejected the move.
But all this started with the strategic transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo. Al Nassr bought the most marketable footballer on the planet into the Saudi pro league, and it grabbed a lot of attention all across the globe.
The effect of that can be clearly seen in the following figures :
- Before Cristiano’s arrival, the Saudi Pro League had very little global audience. But now it is being broadcasted in more than 140 Countries across the globe.
- The broadcasting revenue have also shot up to 650% ever since Cristiano’s Arrival.
- The Saudi Pro League value has tripled from 300 million euros last year to 1.2 Billion euros.
Getting a global audience is exactly what the Saudi League’s plan is.
Saudi Arabia wants to be a major player in the football market and wants to become a highly competitive football league.
The early signs of it are really positive but will this model be sustainable in the long term remains to be seen.
