“€450,000,000 Has Been Spent”- Days After Pep Guardiola’s Concerns, Premier League CEO Breaks Silence on Saudi Arabia’s Investment

Cristiano Ronaldo joining Al Nassr played a vital role in the Saudi Pro League’s new-found success. Consequentially, Saudi Arabian clubs are dominating the market and this year’s summer transfer window. Many in the soccer community now feel that this lure of lucrative contracts from the Gulf has become a threat to top leagues such as the Premier League, La Liga, and others in the top five. A few days back, Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola, also claimed Saudi Arabia’s influence on players to be a threat.

The CEO of the Premier League, however, shares a different opinion than Guardiola. Richard Masters recently shared his take on Saudi Arabia’s influence, and it seems he isn’t too concerned about the entire ordeal.

Premier League CEO responds to Saudi Arabia’s growing influence

In a recent interview with the BBC, Richard Masters shared that he “wouldn’t be too concerned at the moment” about Saudi Arabia’s growing influence. After Ronaldo, several top English league players have also followed in his footsteps. Owing to Saudi Arabia’s lucrative career offer to top players, and the option of blinding riches before retirement, it has become an inevitable threat to the European market.

Richard believes that the Saudi League has a very long road ahead of its final goal. Interestingly, Saudi Arabia has the ambition to become one of the top 10 football leagues in the world by 2030. Richard further talks about the English League’s premium history and 150 years of effort to become one of the most renowned leagues worldwide.

He adds, ” The Premier League is a £6 billion ecosystem economy that invests all of that back into the running of the competition, on the pitch and off the pitch.” Richard then further shares insides on Premier League clubs by saying, “€450 million has been spent, according to our data set on 20 players, under half of which have come from Premier League clubs.”

He also compares Saudi Arabia’s influence to the English League’s 150 years of efforts. The CEO shares, “English football has history and tradition. 98.7% of our tickets were sold last year, has home and away support. So all those things go towards making a league successful and it’s not easy, and it’s very competitive.”

Regardless, Richard Masters doesn’t deny the Saudi League is a threat to the English League. Moreover, on Saudi Arabia’s million-dollar market, he mentions “We need to keep an eye on it. Saudi Arabian clubs are entitled to purchase like everyone else.”

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This takes us back to UEFA Champions Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola’s, warning for top soccer leagues. Guardiola shared that he believes that Saudi Arabia will become an inevitable threat in the future.

Manchester City boss claims Saudi Arabia is a threat

The Manchester City boss broke his silence after one of his stalwarts, Riyad Mahrez, joined the Saudi League. Pep shared that even after Ronaldo’s move, it wasn’t certain if it could influence the English League. However, because of Saudi Arabia’s high-paying offers, and the backing of the Public Investment Fund (PIF), it has become a threat to other top leagues.

Guardiola also shared that after viewing Mahrez’s contract deal he himself couldn’t say ” don’t do it.”  Pep claimed the Saudi league’s financial allure isn’t easy to turn down.

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Do you believe Saudi Arabia can become a top 10 football league in the world? Let us know in the comments.