The Saudi League has shown interest in the current discussions about joining the European Champions League, especially after it spent hundreds of millions of dollars to attract some of the best players in the world and bring about radical changes in the sport.
“We are trying to be different, so we welcome any kind of change or development that can be introduced to the Saudi League,” said Carlo Nohra, Chief Operating Officer of the Saudi Professional League, in an interview published by Bloomberg news agency.
He pointed out that the Saudi Professional League is still “fully committed” to participating in the AFC Champions League, the first competition at the club level in the continent.
He added that any talks about joining the Saudi League teams to participate in the European Champions League will most likely be between the tournament organizer, the European Football Association (UEFA) and the Saudi Football Association.
It is noteworthy that there are a few members of the Union of European Football Associations from non-European countries, including Kazakhstan, whose teams can participate in the Champions League.
Saudi clubs have spent about $650 million in recent months to sign players including Karim Benzema from Real Madrid, the Brazilian Neymar and Jordan Henderson from Liverpool.
The Saudi Hilal tried to lure Argentine Lionel Messi with a huge salary package, but he preferred to move to Inter Miami.
“We are doing our best to bring these players to Saudi Arabia,” said Nohra, who previously worked for World Wrestling Entertainment, the organization responsible for organizing freestyle wrestling events.
He added: «This does not mean that we have an endless budget. But we cannot limit ourselves if we want to bring the best talent here. We have to pay the current sums to bring them here.”
Nohra said that the Saudi League matches are currently being broadcast in 140 countries, and that broadcast revenues have increased by 650 percent since the Portuguese Cristiano Ronaldo moved from Manchester United last year.
He added, “It’s not huge revenues to fund all the activities that we have, but certainly this is an important move.”
The growth of the Saudi League is a long-term process, and there is no specific time to reach the break-even point between expenses and revenues.
Nohra emphasized: “Certainly enhancing the marketing value of the league and clubs is at the heart of what we do. If that makes the league and the clubs investable assets, then we will have achieved our goal.
2023-08-27 12:57:43
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