June 6 – Saudi Arabian money is underpinning FIFA’s expanded Club World Cup. With DAZN spending close to $1 billion on Club World Cup broadcast rights shortly after a $1 billion investment in the company by Saudi’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), PIF has now splashed its cash again, this time becoming the main sponsor of the tournament that is currently looking a little unloved.
Saudi Arabia makes no secret of its use of football to transform and meet the societal demand of a youth-skewed demographic. It is also using football to influence a change in attitude towards the country internationally.
Saudi is widely expected to be awarded the hosting rights for the next Club World Cup in 2029. That is something of a no-brainer as Saudi Arabia are pretty much the only country that has shown unequivocal love for the competition, and a willingness to spend its money demonstrating that.
Saudi Arabia will host the World Cup in 2034.
No value has been given for the 2025 Club World Cup partnership which was blandly described as reflecting “FIFA and PIF’s shared vision to enable greater participation in sports by unlocking new opportunities, fostering innovation and engaging fans around the world. With a focus on youth, the partnership will provide opportunities for young people, supporting FIFA in its efforts to engage and inspire at a grassroots level.”
With no concrete marketing activation or outcome attached to the money rather than the vague and over-used ‘inspiring grassroots engagement’ line (grassroots have been engaged by the game for decades), the only conclusion can be PIF is just giving FIFA a wad of cash with no strings attached. PIF’s primary mission is theoretically to invest in businesses and use the state’s money to generate further income as it expands its economy and national opportunity beyond its petrochemical base. PIF is not using the FIFA investment to promote any of its other businesses.
Hence the money to FIFA looks like a charity donation that saves FIFA and its president Gianni Infantino’s embarrassment over a tournament that has singularly failed to attract the attention and enthusiasm of a football public. A public that is considerably more discerning than FIFA gives it credit for.
The Saudis can’t be blamed for this. They have embraced the change they feel football can bring to their country and used their wells of cash to make it happen. In Infantino they have found a willing, complaint and malleable receptacle with no questions asked or demands made – ‘just show me the money’ should perhaps be FIFA’s more apt slogan for the Club World Cup.
FIFA is slavishly following the line – it is even driving its marketing speak – that its vision is to ‘make football global’. So what happened to the ‘world’s game’ and ‘the people’s game’ and ‘the beautiful game’ that has been honoured, celebrated and respected for coming up to 100 years of World Cup football?
Romy Gai, Chief Business Officer at FIFA, said: “We are delighted to welcome PIF as a partner of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025. Together, we look forward to delivering a historic tournament that inspires and unites fans from around the world.
“The partners of the first-ever 32-team FIFA Club World Cup believe in our vision to make football truly global. Their support of the tournament will not only be integral to its success but will underpin investment in supporting the development of club football everywhere.”
Mohammed AlSayyad, Head of Corporate Brand at PIF, give more focus to what being the ‘main sponsor’ of the tournament means, saying: “PIF is creating a legacy of transformative impact in sports including through its partnerships, delivering positive and lasting results at every level, from players and fans to host communities.
“PIF is at the forefront of growing football around the world following our Concacaf partnership announced last year and our continued investment in football. We are unlocking opportunities to drive the growth of the sport around the world.”
The subtext is that PIF is securing Saudi Arabia’s position at the top table of global football hosting -and good for them if they also use it to clean up their human rights record meaningfully.
The danger for football is that along the way it creates a split not unlike that seen currently in golf, where the elite game becomes perceptionally devalued (despite a huge influx of money) and confused over its identity.
FIFA in its insatiable lust for money, power and control with no regard for anyone else in football is in danger of forcing the creation of a similar rift in football – how, for example, does the Club World Cup benefit Concacaf and its Gold Cup that it is programming directly against in a region that is giving FIFA so much?
But like in golf, people and clubs at all levels below FIFA’s ivory tower will continue to love, play and watch the game whether FIFA are there or not. Perhaps to the point where they no longer care whether FIFA are there or not – indeed that may already be the case, and that isn’t necessarily a good thing for football.
FIFA’s relevance and connection to the real world of football has become little more than a marketing epithet for a game that is already global and has been for a long time.
In that respect the Saudis need to be careful what they wish for as they blindly throw money unaccountably at an already obscenely wealthy world governing body and its out of control leadership. The Saudis want to be seen as world leaders but that comes with responsibility as well.
Contact the writer of this story at moc.l1749287929labto1749287929ofdlr1749287929owedi1749287929sni@n1749287929osloh1749287929cin.l1749287929uap1749287929