There is no reversal in Saudi Arabia.
It is the Saudi Arabian League that has been pouring in huge amounts of money over the past few years. The investment is intended to host the World Cup. In Saudi Arabia, soccer is a national project. Leading the way is the Public Investment Fund (PIF). PIF is the owner of Saudi Arabia’s four clubs: Al-Itihad, Al-Hilal, Al-Nasr, and Al-Ahli. PIF has assets worth a whopping 343 billion pounds (600 trillion won). It is the owner of the PIF that gives the world’s highest annual salary of 200 million euros (297 billion won), to Al-Nasr’s Cristiano Ronaldo.
Superstars including Ronaldo, Karim Benzema (Al-Etihad) and Neymar (Al-Hilal) have entered Saudi Arabia. However, they have not made progress as long as they spend money. They are suffering a crushing defeat in the box office. Although superstars have been recruited, reports are continuing that the average number of spectators is decreasing. Only stars are making record money, and league growth has not progressed at all. As time goes by, league competitiveness is declining.
Things have not changed this season, either. The Daily Star of the U.K. said, “The Saudi Arabian League has opened in the 2024-25 season. The number of spectators for the opening match was far from what they expected. The opening match between Al Wehda and Al Riyadh at the King Abdul Aziz Stadium was 38,000 and only 670 seats were taken. It was a thrilling match. The two teams fought fiercely and ended up in a 3-3 draw. However, empty seats looked like the sea throughout the match. When the home team scored, few celebrated the goal.” 스포츠토토
“Most teams that are not affiliated with the PIF averaged fewer than 1000 spectators over the last season, and Al-Hazem also had the lowest number of spectators ever, 117 per game,” he added.
Then how many spectators will attend the “Symbol” Ronaldo match in Saudi Arabia? Is it showing the biggest box office hit ever? No. Ronaldo’s match is also “disappointed.”
The media outlet said, “Audience in the Saudi Arabian League is a disaster. The same goes for games where Ronaldo plays. Ronaldo’s transfer to Saudi Arabia was expected to bring about a major change in the soccer community, but the Saudi Arabian League is having difficulty attracting fans even though it has been almost two years since Ronaldo arrived. Ronaldo’s presence is not very helpful in arousing interest in soccer in the region. It was unsuccessful.”
“There are statistics that could hurt Ronaldo’s self-esteem. This is the record of attendance in two games this season by Ronaldo’s Al Nasr. In the first round, 8,951 people attended the stadium that can accommodate 25,000 people, and in the second round, only 4,195 fans attended the stadium that can accommodate 34,000 people. The two games combined total 13,146 people. The average attendance at Ronaldo’s games is 6,573.
