The signing of Cristiano Ronaldo is part of Saudi Arabia's strategy to dominate world football. Eager to diversify their economy and jealous of Qatar's growing international influence, the Saudis are boosting their domestic league, have bought Newcastle and are bidding to host the 2030 World Cup.

The signing of Cristiano Ronaldo by Saudi Al Nassr has revolutionized football. With his arrival in Saudi Arabia, the Portuguese player has become the highest paid athlete on the planet. More than two hundred million euros a year is the salary that the club will pay out for having the top scorer in history in its ranks. The message that this astronomical figure sends is forceful: Saudi Arabia wants to emulate Qatar's dominance in football. And it does so at a symbolic moment, just after the World Cup was held in the emirate.

But the transfer of Ronaldo is only part of the strategy. In recent years, Saudi Arabia has poured billions of dollars into sponsoring teams, organizing competitions and buying up elite clubs like England's Newcastle. His goals transcend sports. Riyadh intends to diversify its economy, boost its international influence and limit Qatar's growth. Through football, Saudi Arabia has seen its small neighbor go from being its vassal to becoming a regional power, and it does not want to be left behind.

Al Hilal wants to counteract the arrival of CR7 with the best player in the Qatar 2022 World Cup. According to what was reported by the Spanish media Mundo Deportivo, who, being Catalan, always has good information about Messi and his environment, the figure with which they will try conquering Messi is around 300 million for a season. Yes, he read that right: 300 million for a one-year contract.

Messi will be released on June 30 of this year from Paris Saint Germain, and although he seems to have everything agreed in word to continue at the Parisian club, nothing has been signed at the moment. His future will be a fight between petrodollars: those that come from Qatar, owner of PSG, against those that come from Arabia, the new mecca of this business called soccer.

The Saudi league – unlike its neighboring countries, with semi-professional tournaments – has a good football level, only far from the radar of the powers of America or Europe. Al Hilal and Al Nassr, in fact, make up the Riyadh derby.

The window of opportunity – and perhaps the prelude to the formal offer – to seduce Messi will occur on January 19, when the captain of the world champion will play a friendly match against Riyadh Season, a team made up of footballers from rival Al Hilal and Al Nassr, which will be directed by Marcelo Gallardo.

But the objectives of the Arab country –27 million inhabitants and a surface, unlike the small Qatar, larger than that of Mexico– do not stop at outlandish contracts like Ronaldo or eventually Messi. Arabia wants to organize the 2030 World Cup alone or accompanied: there is a candidacy in process for that World Cup to be held in Egypt, Greece and Arabia. The vertex of three continents: Africa, Europe and Asia.

A curiosity: it will compete against Messi's country and Ronaldo's. The joint applications of Argentina, Uruguay, Chile and Paraguay and that of Spain-Portugal. We will have to see who seduces the FIFA managers the most. Qatar 2022 is a precedent that could give some clue of what will happen.

Source.