How many players can entirely elevate a single league with their presence? Not much. But Cristiano Ronaldo is the crown jewel of the Saudi Arabian League. The Saudi sports minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, expressed his delight in having Ronaldo in the Saudi Pro League as he boosted the country’s media coverage for soccer.
Whenever players come to lesser-known leagues, it lifts the team and the league as a whole. Ronaldo’s signing proved a masterstroke for Al-Nassr and the entire competition. The ‘Siuuu’ celebration has taken over the country!
The brand value of the league is increasing at a rapid rate and it automatically leads to monstrous tv deals. The sports minister detailed his thoughts in an interview. He explained the deal’s benefits that promoted the league’s growth into something better.
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Cristiano Ronaldo leaves an everlasting impact on the Saudi Pro League!
According to the Athletic, the sports minister revealed the impact of CR7 appearing in Saudi Arabia. He stated, “I’ll give you an example, just by Ronaldo coming we have 137 channels around the world broadcasting the Saudi league. We wanted that in the beginning but they said they were not interested, but since one player came now it’s all over the world.”
Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus, and they started broadcasting Serie A. Now he joined The Saudi League and it will be broadcasted on BEIN Sports channels from next season. His effect is second to none
— BH (@MCFC__BH) March 10, 2023
The minister continued, “There is a possibility to come to a new place and grow the development of sport, and we saw that with Ronaldo coming and how the attraction happened all over the world.”
Saudi Arabian investors aim to become powerhouses in soccer by investing in various clubs. One of the country’s long-list of billionaires, Yasir Al-Rumayyan, invested in the English Premier League soccer side Newcastle United. Thus, they look interested in investing with various soccer clubs.
In terms of impact, the Ronaldo signing looks similar to David Beckham arriving at the MLS to play for LA Galaxy.
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David Beckham redefined the MLS
Like the Saudi Pro League, the MLS was in the shadows of most leagues globally. They had solid players coming through the ranks but never got unparallel recognition. Therefore, signing Beckham became a masterstroke. Having someone like Beckham helps the league to draw eyeballs. For years there were building the league up, but now they recently secured a 10-year deal with Apple TV to broadcast the matches.
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Thus, the effect of Cristiano Ronaldo in the league has similar shades to Beckham’s time in the MLS. Nevertheless, better players would want to play with superstars, in turn, helps the quality of soccer they play as well. Therefore, Ronaldo creates a rippling effect wherever he goes, and long may it continue!
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