The transfer of Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo to the ranks of the Saudi club Al-Nasr constituted a historic moment for football in the Arab region and the Middle East region, after Saudi Arabia became the first country outside the European continent to succeed in including and benefiting from the services of the world star, who won the Golden Ball as the best player in the world 5 times.
A few days ago, the Al-Nasr team, nicknamed “Al-Alamy”, detonated a heavy-caliber surprise, by officially announcing the Ronaldo (37-year-old) deal with a 2.5-year contract, and unconfirmed press reports indicated that Ronaldo would become an ambassador for the Riyadh file to host the 2030 World Cup due to a clause in his contract. With victory.
Although the Saudi club management kept silent about the material details of the deal, which was described as historic, the international media confirmed that its costs are estimated at 200 million euros, in addition to other commercial rights that make the salary of the Portuguese star the highest in football history.
Ronaldo's deal guarantees several gains for the club and the kingdom due to the sporting and economic potential of the Portuguese star, in addition to the fact that the victory will be of interest to all the media in the world in order to follow the performance of the "Don" in his first experience in a league away from European stadiums.
For this, the Marketing and Investment Department of Al-Nasr is working on the investment and economic benefit from the number of the player's followers on social media, as their number on "Twitter" exceeds 100 million, in addition to more than 500 million followers on Instagram, and more than 200 million on Facebook.
High market value
According to Western press reports, the rate of Ronaldo's profits on each post on "Instagram" amounts to 1.7 million pounds sterling (about two million dollars), in addition to 5 million followers on his channel on the "YouTube" platform, in addition to that he is considered the number one player in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf and the Arabs among children and youth. .
In addition, Ronaldo took the lead in the most followed athletes on Twitter, after the number of his followers reached 100 million, and he became one of only 5 people in the world to reach this number of followers and the first among football stars and athletes in general.
In the wake of the signing of the “Don” transfer deal and as an immediate economic reflection, the market value of Al-Nasr club increased by 34%, reaching 79.10 million euros, with a difference of 30 million from its closest competitors, to sit on the throne of the Saudi clubs with the highest market value, according to the “Transfer” website. Market" famous and specialized in the value and prices of players and clubs.
And about the benefits and gains, both sports and economic, that will accrue to the Saudi League after officially joining Al-Nasr, and economist and businessman Hussein Shobokshi says that Ronaldo is not the first exciting deal known to Saudi stadiums, but it was preceded by many important and illustrious names, but it is certain that Ronaldo’s deal is the largest and most important. And the most influential, stressing that Ronaldo is not only a player, but an influential commercial product that the numbers speak of.
Sports and tourism ambassador
The Saudi businessman explains that Ronaldo has a huge popular base that moves with him whenever he moves to a new club in his career, which is reflected in the positive financial results on a huge business empire that governs him between sponsorship contracts for the most important sportswear company, hair care products, and his own brand, which includes perfumes and hotels. for example.
Shobokshi adds that it is not hidden from one of the ambitious Saudi plans related to the football and tourism league sectors, and with the presence of a world star the size of Ronaldo in the Kingdom for two years, Ronaldo will transform from a professional football player in a Saudi club to an ambassador for sports and tourism promotion indirectly but with great influence, and here The challenge lies in the need to make the best use of this exceptional golden opportunity, stressing that "marketing is the art of exploiting every opportunity, and Ronaldo is a difficult opportunity to replicate."
And he agrees with the previous opinion, the Saudi expert in sports marketing and investment, Dr. Hafez Al-Medlej, as he confirms that the material value of Ronaldo’s accession deal to Al-Nasr Club can be returned through marketing channels and multiple investment arms.
Al-Medlej added - in a televised statement - that the financial value that paid for the transfer of the "Don" to victory is very large and amounts to about 500 million euros, equivalent to two billion Saudi riyals, and it can be recovered through marketing channels and multiple investment arms.
The market value of the Saudi club Al-Nasr increased by 34% after Ronaldo joined (Reuters)
positive perceptions
Al-Mudlej pointed out that after Ronaldo moved to play in the Saudi League, the Kingdom became the focus of attention of the whole world, stressing the need to deal carefully with a star of this size and not to put any kind of pressure on him that might lead to negative results and uncalculated consequences.
As for a member of the board of directors of the Saudi Al-Ahly Club and former investment official, Abdullah Ajaj, he believes that Ronaldo’s professionalism in the Saudi League contributed to putting the Kingdom on the global sports map, as all fans and fans of “Don” around the world tend to follow their favorite star, even if he is in a league outside the continent. European and away from the five major European leagues.
He pointed out that this deal will contribute to introducing Saudi Arabia and its clubs by raising the percentage of viewership and follow-up to the league championship in the Kingdom, after joining the best player in the world 5 times and the most international players paying goals.
Ajaj confirms - in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net - that the Ronaldo deal helps raise the viewership of all local Saudi tournaments, not just the "Roshen" professional league, and that Ronaldo's professionalism will open great doors for the arrival of many major players in the world to play in the Saudi League and facilitate the negotiation process with them. , revealing that there are negotiations with a number of international stars to move to play in the league, as there are plans for the Saudi League to become among the best 10 or 15 leagues in the world in the coming years.
He stressed that Ronaldo is not just a player participating in the Saudi League competitions, but rather serves as a global ambassador for the Kingdom to promote various marketing goals, including attracting 100 million visitors by 2030.
For his part, Saudi sports critic Majed Al Fahmy says that Ronaldo's transfer deal has many dimensions, including the sports dimension, as he indicates that despite the professionalism of many international stars in Saudi clubs, it is the strongest deal in the history of Saudi, Arab, Asian and African sports, stressing that its sports dimension is Shedding more light on Saudi football.
In contrast to the sports dimension, the Saudi sports critic believes - in an interview with Al-Jazeera Net - that in light of the Kingdom's keenness to revive its historical and heritage places and stimulate tourism of all kinds in a greater way and provide it with the entertainment aspect in an unprecedented way, it needs advertising support to highlight Saudi tourism and its openness in a brilliant manner. In front of all the eyes of the world, considering that Ronaldo's visit to these Saudi landmarks contributes to introducing the countries of the world to Saudi and Arab culture and history.
Al-Fahmy adds that the Western media used to fabricate an incorrect stereotype about Arabs and Muslims in general, but the World Cup in Qatar proved the Western lies against the Arab region and its peoples not true, stressing that Saudi Arabia, through its pioneering role, is able to draw the world's attention to the extent of the civilization of the countries and peoples of the Arab region. Through a player who is considered the most followed in the world by more than a billion people through his communication platforms.
And he stressed that the "Don" deal will not be the last, but will be followed by other deals with international stars, considering that this professional transformation will be followed by many, as many (super) players in major leagues will be liberated from the idea of not going to the Middle East and there will be a quantum leap related to such deals. .