Ronaldo's impact was enormous in building Saudi football, we realize that he opened the door for players from leagues in Europe to go to the SPL. Now it has been proven that their investment is working more than expected, attracting the attention of football fans around the world, and with the appointment of Saudi as host of the 2034 World Cup it will be the peak of everyone attention.
Everything is just making more sense in the Asian world as an entirety and Saudi Pro League to be precise since they had that laudable decision to bring Cristiano Ronaldo to the league. Seems like a planned idea to shift the world's football attention to the country. FIFA has also taken another laudable decision in support of the Saudi Arabia which makes them the hosts of the next 2034 FIFA World Cup after the recent 22 FIFA World Cup hosted by Qatar.
Looks like a well executed plan to have subsequently opened its windows to other star players like Karim Benzema, Sadio Mane, Neymar Jr amongst other big names that have made it to the Ballon D'or ranking. By the time you factor in all these efforts, you will acknowledge the effort the country is putting to their league. After the transfer windows were closed, we had a total sum of 800 million dollars spent on transfer of players by the clubs in the league. Incredible.
I suspect this has to do with the fact that everyone knows the Saudi Pro League is signing many former world stars who are now in the midst or at the end of their decline. It is like buying an empty shell. They are buying the names, but not the quality that the people loved these players for. Names aren't worthless though and yes they have some influence in the world of soccer, but when a soccer enthusiast has to choose between watching a game with Mbappe in Europe or watching a game with Ronaldo in Saudi Arabia, I am quite sure what the answer would be for the overwhelming majority.
Well I am finding it difficult to distinguish between the name and the quality. I suppose it is the quality of the players that determines the name they have made and it is something that have been gotten over time. The truth is that, it is not going to be easy for the league to get that performance and credibility like the European leagues. It is a gradual process though. If the league can consistently bring in more star players and upcoming young players, it will grow their fan base.
Lastly, I believe the Saudi Arabia FIFA World Cup will add more spices to the cake since that will be another avenue for them to promote the country.