Tuesday was a big day for Saudi Arabian football.
Fans woke up early to watch Al-Hilal stun Manchester City 4-3 to move into the last eight of the Club World Cup, while in the evening newly promoted Neom SC kicked off what is expected to be a busy summer transfer period in the country by signing former Arsenal forward Alexandre Lacazette.
Since Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Al-Nassr in December 2022, the Saudi Pro League (SPL) has come a long way, as demonstrated by Ronaldo’s Riyadh rivals Hilal.
The Blues started in the US with draws against Real Madrid and Red Bull Salzburg and progressed from the group stage with a win against Pachuca of Mexico.
After then achieving the first victory by an Asian side over European opposition at the Club World Cup, Hilal are full of confidence heading into the quarter-final clash with Fluminense on Friday at 20:00 BST.
But whatever happens against the Brazilians, the four-time Asian champions are ready to join the global elite.
“It is now safe to say that Al-Hilal have just become Asia’s first super club,” Simon Chadwick, Professor of AfroEurasian sport at the Emlyon Business School in Paris, told BBC Sport.
Chadwick says this is not all down to spending, however, after Hilal were taken over by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), which also owns Newcastle United, in 2023.
In those two years they have added a mix of veteran stars – defenders Joao Cancelo and Kalidou Koulibaly from Manchester City and Chelsea – players in their prime such as Malcom, Ruben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Renan Lodi, and youngsters including Brazilian forward Marcos Leonardo from Benfica.
Neymar was signed from Paris St-Germain and then left for Santos. Meanwhile, Simone Inzaghi arrived from Inter as manager shortly after the Milan side’s Champions League final defeat by PSG.
“Al-Hilal has long had a large, committed fan base and has enjoyed considerable success,” added Chadwick.
“However, the stability and discipline that PIF ownership has brought, allied to revenues the club is now generating, have clearly elevated Al-Hilal to a new level.”
On numerous occasions, Ronaldo, who last week extended his Al-Nassr deal by two years, has said he believes the SPL to be one of the top five leagues in the world.
Former Al-Hilal midfielder Tarik El-Taib agrees.
“When we look at the league, we talk about Joao Cancelo, Riyad Mahrez, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema,” said the ex-Libya international.
“If you look at the Spanish league – excluding Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid – the foreign players in the Saudi League are at a higher level.
“There are clubs like Chelsea that have a lot of professional players, but they are not like the big names in the Saudi League.”
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