Why Saudi Arabia wants all the sports

The country is buying up as many sports as it can
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The biggest sports story of 2023 has been the dramatic investment, disruption, and competition caused by Saudi Arabia. The wealthy Middle Eastern country launched a golf league that rivaled, then merged with, the powerful PGA tour. It poured billions into attracting some of the world's best soccer players from Europe. And it's reportedly campaigning to host the Olympics and World Cup in the near future. This video explains why Saudi Arabia has decided to put so much money behind sports, how far-reaching its investments are, and what it means for one of the world’s most popular industries.
Special thanks to Karim Zidan, Simon Chadwick, Ben Rich, and Raphael Le Magoariec.
Welcome to Search Party!
Search Party is a new, independent, video news show that combines experienced journalism and visual design to decode the most complex stories in international sports and geopolitics.
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About:
Search Party is led and produced by Sam Ellis, a journalist, director, editor, and animator based in New York City. For more than 6 years, Ellis produced the hugely popular video series, Vox Atlas, for which he earned an Emmy nomination. He specializes in breaking down the most complex new stories and presenting them with a refreshing, accessible, and engaging visual style.
He’s produced explainers on some of the world’s thorniest geopolitical stories; from corruption scandals in Latin America, conflict in the Middle East, and the rise of China, to the world of sports; the Monaco Grand Prix, the FIFA corruption scandal, and the 100-foot waves of Nazaré, Portugal. Ellis has also directed multiple episodes of TV; notably on Netflix’s ‘Explained’ and HBO Sport’s ‘Level Playing Field’.
Got story ideas or tips? Reach out to the team at:
Twitter: / swellis_
Email: [e-mail]

[@AFIO-tm9yq]

Providing subtitles so people can understand Newcastle fans is hilarious 😂

[@Search-Party]

😂

[@krishnapardeshi777]

​@@Search-Party😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊😊

[@grissee]

9:19

[@GoodComedian2011]

And useful:) I would not understand at all what they are saying:)

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?..

[@sollamander2206]

Awesome that you spoke to Karim Zidan. He is undoubtedly the biggest expert on the intersection of politics and sport in the Muslim world. A video on the politics of MMA in the North Caucasus would be great too.

[@mathiasclausen5030]

You should include the fact that the Saudis are currently waving a major bag of cash in front of many esports orgs. From the NEOM deal the LEC (League of Legends European League) had to cancel due to fan backlash, to the large tournaments in CSGO and other esports being held in Saudi Arabia recently. The Saudis could control most of esports within a few years since a lot of VC money has been pulled after the Covid years. Esports also has a generally younger audience than traditional sports which is in line with the people MBS is trying to cater to.

[@chainbane]

They hosted a dota 2 tournament in Riyadh this year with a price pool of 15 million which is insane since the TI (biggest event each year) this year is only 3 million.

[@carmansunnyboi7972]

Yeah gamers8 is huge

[@coolinmac]

They won’t control it. China already does and won’t let them

[@171reko]

​@@chainbaneyes but this year you have to understand that valve kind of shot themselves in the foot. Last year it was near 30-35 million USD. The Dota 2 players were not happy with valve and their monitization tactics and just didn't buy enough skins. They fought against one capitalist and opened the door for another one.

[@twohats6001]

Although less money than with other esports they've been sticking their blood soaked fingers in the FGC.

[@Smallbore2wheels]

This series is going to be so great. Thank you for bringing this up to the world in such an easy to understand way

[@PatrickWilliamsI]

Maybe an episode should be done about sports in the US as an opiate to society. The wool is pulled over the eye of working and middle class young men that they are nothing but slaves and pawns to the 1% of the 1%.

[@PatrickWilliamsI]

Do you mean that the US hosts multiple Olympics and World Cup to wash over the half million kids killed in Iraq, the use of Agent Orange in Vietnam, dropping nukes in Japan, etc. This gives me a great idea 💡. Israel should sponsor the NBA.

[@abdullahalsubie9165]

But still very small amount of people is watching it

[@Smallbore2wheels]

@@abdullahalsubie9165 you have to remember it's a fairly new channel. It's got amazing stories videos. Hopefully the algorithm will shine it's smile on them soon🤞🏼

[@PokhrajRoy.]

I’m no Sporty Spice but this channel is helping me gain a new perspective. Great job 👏🏽

[@SpareMango]

It's actually terrifying how genius and methodical Saudi Arabia's plan to grow on the world stage is.

[@zo7034]

Its not really genius, its just that the general public are super dumb and gullible

[@JoySingh]

gives off the same vibes as other dictators such as xi jin ping, putin and kim jong un

[@haruyanto8085]

Still far more humane than what the West has done in order to rise to global relevancy.

[@JINGLI-sf7tz]

​@@JoySinghthat is xi jin ping

[@jaisalrw3494]

@@alfwok now sure why you call it greed. Any reasonable leader would want to improve their economy

[@beng1568]

Thank you for having Karim Zidan on he’s so under appreciated in the combat sports media world for the coverage he provide on this

[@Search-Party]

He's terrific

[@KSA-866]

اولا السعودية تخوض حرب مع ميلشيات الحوثي التابعة لايران في اليمن بطلب من الرئيس اليمني بعد سقوط العاصمة صنعاء في قبضتهم وهروبه الى عدن العاصمة المؤقت. ثانيا ذكرك انتهاكات لحقوق الانسان هذا غير صحيح السعودية دولة مسلمة وعقيدتنا ضد المثلية او مجتمع الميم و المفترض احترام ذلك من الجميع وفي ما يتم نشرة عبر الاعلام الغربي المغرض ضد كل شيء مسلم بسبب اشياء عقدية كذب السعودية تقوم بسجن رجال الدين المتطرفين وكذلك اللبراليين المتطرفين الذين يدعون للارهاب لكن الاعلام الغربي يحرف ذلك ثالثا ردا على التقرير السعودي تعتبر بحكم وجود مكة و المدينة المدينتين المقدستين للمسلمين لذلك هيا دولة رئيسة في المنطقة كذلك مع كونها اكبر دولة مصدرة للنفط اما التقرير المزيف يظهر انه سبب قوة المملكة اقليميا وعالميا بسبب النفط هذا خاطئ. واصلا من اسباب الرؤية تقليل الاعتماد على النفط و الاسثمار عبر الصندوق السيادي وذلك كمصدر تمويل و قوة ناعمة مثل اي دولة في العالم بمافيها امريكا و أروبا وكذلك ذكر تبيض رياضي وكان بريطانى لم تقوم بذلك عند بداية جلب الاعبين اما الان يقوموا باتهام السعودية بدفع الاموال الكبيرة وكانهم لم يفعلوا ذلك عندما كان الدوري الايطالي الاقوى في العالم . في الخبر انا لاحظت اشياء كثيرة مغلوطة في المقطع ولا اعتقد انه تم ذكرها بالخطأ وكل الهدف من التقرير تغير فكر المشاهد الغربي اتجاه مايحدث من نجاح في السعودية مثل ماكان يذكر الاعلام ان السعودية مجرد صحراء وجمال وخيم ونفط وان الشعب متخلف ولان نرا كثير من من اتى الى السعودية يذكر عكس ذلك اتمنى منكم اخذ المعلومات من الجهات ليست المتحيزة في الاخير ادعوكم لزيارة وطني المملكة العربية السعودية لمشاهدة الحقيقة بعينكم والشعب السعودي سيبهركم بحسن الضيافة ​@@Search-Party

[@meghanm05]

This is SUCH an important topic to cover, even as a huge sports fan I hadn't realized the full scope of Saudi's efforts. Looking forward to the rest of this series.

[@KSA-866]

اولا السعودية تخوض حرب مع ميلشيات الحوثي التابعة لايران في اليمن بطلب من الرئيس اليمني بعد سقوط العاصمة صنعاء في قبضتهم وهروبه الى عدن العاصمة المؤقت. ثانيا ذكرك انتهاكات لحقوق الانسان هذا غير صحيح السعودية دولة مسلمة وعقيدتنا ضد المثلية او مجتمع الميم و المفترض احترام ذلك من الجميع وفي ما يتم نشرة عبر الاعلام الغربي المغرض ضد كل شيء مسلم بسبب اشياء عقدية كذب السعودية تقوم بسجن رجال الدين المتطرفين وكذلك اللبراليين المتطرفين الذين يدعون للارهاب لكن الاعلام الغربي يحرف ذلك ثالثا ردا على التقرير السعودي تعتبر بحكم وجود مكة و المدينة المدينتين المقدستين للمسلمين لذلك هيا دولة رئيسة في المنطقة كذلك مع كونها اكبر دولة مصدرة للنفط اما التقرير المزيف يظهر انه سبب قوة المملكة اقليميا وعالميا بسبب النفط هذا خاطئ. واصلا من اسباب الرؤية تقليل الاعتماد على النفط و الاسثمار عبر الصندوق السيادي وذلك كمصدر تمويل و قوة ناعمة مثل اي دولة في العالم بمافيها امريكا و أروبا وكذلك ذكر تبيض رياضي وكان بريطانى لم تقوم بذلك عند بداية جلب الاعبين اما الان يقوموا باتهام السعودية بدفع الاموال الكبيرة وكانهم لم يفعلوا ذلك عندما كان الدوري الايطالي الاقوى في العالم . في الخبر انا لاحظت اشياء كثيرة مغلوطة في المقطع ولا اعتقد انه تم ذكرها بالخطأ وكل الهدف من التقرير تغير فكر المشاهد الغربي اتجاه مايحدث من نجاح في السعودية مثل ماكان يذكر الاعلام ان السعودية مجرد صحراء وجمال وخيم ونفط وان الشعب متخلف ولان نرا كثير من من اتى الى السعودية يذكر عكس ذلك اتمنى منكم اخذ المعلومات من الجهات ليست المتحيزة في الاخير ادعوكم لزيارة وطني المملكة العربية السعودية لمشاهدة الحقيقة بعينكم والشعب السعودي سيبهركم بحسن الضيافة

[@RichieAU]

I think at least half of an episode could be dedicated to Formula 1 and it’s all encompassing Aramco sponsorship in addition to how there was an attack on an oil depot right before the 2022 race with smoke visible from the track. Some asked to cancel the race. Drivers were already concerned about human rights violations and the ethicality of racing in Jeddah. Now Saudi Arabia had to answer concerns about the safety of the drivers’ own lives

[@KSA-866]

اولا السعودية تخوض حرب مع ميلشيات الحوثي التابعة لايران في اليمن بطلب من الرئيس اليمني بعد سقوط العاصمة صنعاء في قبضتهم وهروبه الى عدن العاصمة المؤقت. ثانيا ذكرك انتهاكات لحقوق الانسان هذا غير صحيح السعودية دولة مسلمة وعقيدتنا ضد المثلية او مجتمع الميم و المفترض احترام ذلك من الجميع وفي ما يتم نشرة عبر الاعلام الغربي المغرض ضد كل شيء مسلم بسبب اشياء عقدية كذب السعودية تقوم بسجن رجال الدين المتطرفين وكذلك اللبراليين المتطرفين الذين يدعون للارهاب لكن الاعلام الغربي يحرف ذلك ثالثا ردا على التقرير السعودي تعتبر بحكم وجود مكة و المدينة المدينتين المقدستين للمسلمين لذلك هيا دولة رئيسة في المنطقة كذلك مع كونها اكبر دولة مصدرة للنفط اما التقرير المزيف يظهر انه سبب قوة المملكة اقليميا وعالميا بسبب النفط هذا خاطئ. واصلا من اسباب الرؤية تقليل الاعتماد على النفط و الاسثمار عبر الصندوق السيادي وذلك كمصدر تمويل و قوة ناعمة مثل اي دولة في العالم بمافيها امريكا و أروبا وكذلك ذكر تبيض رياضي وكان بريطانى لم تقوم بذلك عند بداية جلب الاعبين اما الان يقوموا باتهام السعودية بدفع الاموال الكبيرة وكانهم لم يفعلوا ذلك عندما كان الدوري الايطالي الاقوى في العالم . في الخبر انا لاحظت اشياء كثيرة مغلوطة في المقطع ولا اعتقد انه تم ذكرها بالخطأ وكل الهدف من التقرير تغير فكر المشاهد الغربي اتجاه مايحدث من نجاح في السعودية مثل ماكان يذكر الاعلام ان السعودية مجرد صحراء وجمال وخيم ونفط وان الشعب متخلف ولان نرا كثير من من اتى الى السعودية يذكر عكس ذلك اتمنى منكم اخذ المعلومات من الجهات ليست المتحيزة في الاخير ادعوكم لزيارة وطني المملكة العربية السعودية لمشاهدة الحقيقة بعينكم والشعب السعودي سيبهركم بحسن الضيافة

[@thedogwhowearsasuit.9425]

Asians and Africans were considered savages in the West. For eg.The iconic war hero of the West Winston Churchill considered the Chinese and the Indians barbarians.The Americans used Chemical weapons in Vietnam. Now that The West is rich they preach. Had Germans killed 1 million people in Asian or Africa one would have cared. No films would have been made every year. No Oscars would have been given to shills like Spielberg for his propaganda.

[@Pekkelsson]

Aramco sponsorship deal is 10 years $450 million and SA GP in Jeddah deal is 10 years and $650 million for Formula 1.

[@danielainger8666]

Aramaic Sponsor the Aston Martin team as well I think.

[@niketdube4712]

Damn, this channel is so underrated! This channel needs more views. Such good content.

[@wilyamouhn4875]

Great production. When you got recording from zoom or whatever could be great to delay the sound slightly so it syncs with the lips better then it looks less like zoom. This is very common even with big broadcasters (delaying audio works even with live content) Minor thing but makes it better. All good vibes, thanks you for putting worth while content on KZbin. Hope you find this in the feed 🙌🏻

[@Just4Kixs]

I really like Sam's voice, even on the Atlas series of Vox. It's just so soothing and relaxing.

[@yadav_965]

Marry him

[@Just4Kixs]

@@yadav_965 He's cute, I'd definitely marry him if he be gay.

[@nomomedia]

😂😂😂😂😂

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?

[@JohnGeorgeBauerBuis]

Perhaps branching out into ASMR meditation would be worthwhile.

[@billem16]

this was a good video. more search party videos on sports please. LOVED the first one about the PL. more like this please sir

[@Binikeabenik]

Wow, this is seriously impressive content. Great job!

[@daffaalexander6300]

Extremely underrated video. Deserves more likes and views!. Keep going Sam (and probably Johnny)

[@anthonylicona309]

Amazing video and very informative! Keep the style up!!!

[@FirstGigawattDown]

"We're living in the middle of a massive negotiation." YES!

[@wiannbruinenberg]

Thanks for providing me another 15 minutes of entertainment while learning something :)

[@Kolari85]

I love this channel! Sam's content is always the best content. There are Vox videos he created years ago that I still rewatch periodically, and I love that he's leaning into sports.

[@amrismailJ]

This channel is great combining soccer and politics in a simple video ain't easy, you did a lot of job

[@KSA-866]

اولا السعودية تخوض حرب مع ميلشيات الحوثي التابعة لايران في اليمن بطلب من الرئيس اليمني بعد سقوط العاصمة صنعاء في قبضتهم وهروبه الى عدن العاصمة المؤقت. ثانيا ذكرك انتهاكات لحقوق الانسان هذا غير صحيح السعودية دولة مسلمة وعقيدتنا ضد المثلية او مجتمع الميم و المفترض احترام ذلك من الجميع وفي ما يتم نشرة عبر الاعلام الغربي المغرض ضد كل شيء مسلم بسبب اشياء عقدية كذب السعودية تقوم بسجن رجال الدين المتطرفين وكذلك اللبراليين المتطرفين الذين يدعون للارهاب لكن الاعلام الغربي يحرف ذلك ثالثا ردا على التقرير السعودي تعتبر بحكم وجود مكة و المدينة المدينتين المقدستين للمسلمين لذلك هيا دولة رئيسة في المنطقة كذلك مع كونها اكبر دولة مصدرة للنفط اما التقرير المزيف يظهر انه سبب قوة المملكة اقليميا وعالميا بسبب النفط هذا خاطئ. واصلا من اسباب الرؤية تقليل الاعتماد على النفط و الاسثمار عبر الصندوق السيادي وذلك كمصدر تمويل و قوة ناعمة مثل اي دولة في العالم بمافيها امريكا و أروبا وكذلك ذكر تبيض رياضي وكان بريطانى لم تقوم بذلك عند بداية جلب الاعبين اما الان يقوموا باتهام السعودية بدفع الاموال الكبيرة وكانهم لم يفعلوا ذلك عندما كان الدوري الايطالي الاقوى في العالم . في الخبر انا لاحظت اشياء كثيرة مغلوطة في المقطع ولا اعتقد انه تم ذكرها بالخطأ وكل الهدف من التقرير تغير فكر المشاهد الغربي اتجاه مايحدث من نجاح في السعودية مثل ماكان يذكر الاعلام ان السعودية مجرد صحراء وجمال وخيم ونفط وان الشعب متخلف ولان نرا كثير من من اتى الى السعودية يذكر عكس ذلك اتمنى منكم اخذ المعلومات من الجهات ليست المتحيزة في الاخير ادعوكم لزيارة وطني المملكة العربية السعودية لمشاهدة الحقيقة بعينكم والشعب السعودي سيبهركم بحسن الضيافة

[@learner6984]

Nice Video. I do have to say that u and Johnny Harris are the top in delivering journalist media. Some things that other news outlets don't do

[@alejandrodejan9250]

This video is really well made. It’s like a watching a thesis of someone who’s majoring in International Relations and Geopolitics. You’ve earned a subscriber in me! You guys are amazing. Please continue to make quality contents like this.

[@shahdeen-en5qn]

Thanks search party! Very cool!

[@southpaw0x1a]

You could mention what are the potential downfalls of these investments in the long term (e.g. what happens when the flow of money from oil starts to slow down) or other geopolitical issues.

[@catcoder12]

Really really well made documentary. The puzzle animation is really genius. Can't believe that such stuff is free to watch online.

[@rygarisfun8164]

Honestly, I think Saudi Arabia is overall making positive moves.

[@hamodyization]

Thank you, but some would still call it sportwashing and hating on saudi

[@-__506__-]

They are jealous of our success. Haven't you noticed that when we cut oil the western powers immediately erupt with criticisms of random things with seemingly no source? Take the Ethiopian illegals who according to Amnesty, were attacked. They never provided any source other than an anonymous voice with surprisingly good English, especially considering he's supposed to be from one of the most impoverished countries in the world. They are jealous of us and want us to be nothing but an oil producer. @@hamodyization

[@calinho7689]

Capital punishments are at an all time high.

[@r.o.b8728]

@@hamodyization if they gave their people human rights the rest of the world wouldn't care about what saudi arabia does

[@apexdaniyal5571]

Hey! New one here! Came through Johnny Harris! And as I was expecting, your production and explanation quality is top notch! Keep this going, you guys are gonna be bombing!🥂 And and a request from my side will he to make more and more of these type of explainers of events that involve a combination of economics, business, geopolitics and revolution

[@brunoriveracasadella8623]

Love this content

[@pioneeringmedia]

Enjoyed that.

[@oscarhjern13]

Look forward to the upcoming video on football. ⚽️

[@TshepoThaela]

Finally, some great journalism with nuance.

[@mazenphotos6967]

I think we could say the same about Europe, is there investment in sports for years a way to wash there reputation from colonialism? Or the humanitarian crisis that occurred in WW1 and WW2?

[@Jabberstax]

Firstly, all of the sports mentioned were invented in Europe. European countries didn't go to other continents to invest in their homegrown sports in order to "repair" reputations. Secondly, these sports were being played long before WW1 even. The commercial growth in each sport has risen along with the growth in globalisation. Your assertion that their rise in popularity has anything to do with the century old conflict of WW1, or WW2 is, quite frankly, ridiculous. Also, the idea that European countries need to be ashamed of their colonial pasts only really came about within the last 2 decades (a belief that is, in itself, ridiculous). Long after the global rise in popularity of European sports.

[@thedogwhowearsasuit.9425]

​​@@JabberstaxAll he is trying to say is Western media should shut the hell up when it comes to HUMAN RIGHTS. Just accept the investments and enjoy. Everyone is an asshole. Everyone is pursuing national interests. Everyone has got blood on their hands. Only money matters.

[@EmilRadsky-ll8kx]

not really, u r being delusional here. Even human rights invented by the West. Even camel rights are higher ranked than human rights in Saudi Arabia.@@thedogwhowearsasuit.9425

[@ehtishamullah7534]

What really got me early on in the video was, Saudi kings provide their people with free education, heath, jobs and no taxes to make them dependent on them. Yes please.

[@calinho7689]

So we should just accept that instead of striving for better?

[@Shoostep]

This channel is amazing. ❤

[@charms5409]

damn i was captivated by your voice the entire video and it was so entertaining and informative at the same time. New fan here

[@gabrielcostafavero2744]

excellent job! keep the good work, hugs from brazil 🇧🇷🇧🇷

[@quaternio]

They are doing the same thing with video games. The prince has bought interests in many huge game development/publishing firms. Realize, the video game industry pulls quite a bit more revenue annually than the movie industry.

[@jeffGordon852]

really? can you list some>?

[@quaternio]

@@jeffGordon852Bought 5% stake in Nintendo in 2022, making it the 5th largest shareholder. Owns 96% of SNK as of 2022, bought in chunks over past few years. The fund has owned smaller stakes in EA, Activision Blizzard (presumably being bought by Microsoft now though), and Take-Two.

[@rishikeshav8360]

Heyy, I love your informative content and learn a lot. Can you do a video on Cricket and its influence around the world. Criciket world cup is happeneing and many are talking about it, a geopolitical angle should be present in a such a big sport, don't you think. Thank you

[@Search-Party]

You're in luck ... stay tuned

[@Mr.Septon]

As someone who has zero interest in sports, and more often than not has been angered by the political and financial backing that they receive throughout my life, but I love politics and this hits the right spot for me. Also thanks for subtitles on Newcastle fans, otherwise it's jibberish lol.

[@badofcheese]

Given your use of English, you’re certainly (North) American. I’m not here to criticise. As a Geordie (a person from Newcastle upon Tyne), I’m not here to insult you for not understanding English by English people. I’m just here to confirm that no one else in this country can understand us either.

[@JustinTimeFor...]

Well done SP

[@diomuda7903]

This is also happening in Europe, in particular you can look at Kazakhstan, the UEFA member only because it sought membership change from AFC. Oil and vast money allowed them to manipulate and the Kazakh League is now filled with foreigners with high salary payments, even when Kazakhstan is similar to Saudi Arabia in term of being an authoritarian state and they care nothing for civilians. Remember that Kazakhstan has the largest economy in Central Asia and vast oil reserve was the reason why the country was the first former Soviet state (after the Baltics) to pay off all debts left behind by the Soviets. The major and only difference is, the Saudis are far smarter than the Kazakhstanis, they exploit Europe without joining UEFA, because joining UEFA has already made Kazakhstan the pariah for many democratic nations (they grudgingly agreed to play but didn't recognise Kazakhstan as an UEFA nation at all - Kazakhstan does not even exist in UEFA map). Staying in AFC, which is full of autocrat nations where Kazakhstan should actually belong to, worked at least for the Saudis to have leverage. Moreover, Saudi Arabia benefited from their greater ties to Europe, something Kazakhstan does not have the privileges.

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?,.,-,,.--

[@diomuda7903]

@@ricardoxavier827 No, it won't change anything. Why did you think Kazakhstan joined UEFA at the first place? Kazakhstan is not a democracy, and is not friend to democratic Europe. Yet it joined because of the money, not football. And Kazakhstan has been using a ponzi scheme to channel the money from Europe while remaining repressive at home and not tolerating dissidents abroad. A Super League formation will not address it because it will only attract wealthy people into betting and gambling for it even more, which is something Kazakh elites will go at length. A Super League creation doesn't solve the problem. It escalated it. Saudi elites, like Kazakhstani elites, do not care about democracy. They care about themselves and a Super League creation will only allow Saudi Arabia to rush even more money for it. And Saudi Arabia is far richer than Kazakhstan.

[@-__506__-]

Saudi Arabia actually cares for it's citizens far more than the west ever has. Free healthcare, no taxes, free education even up to a college level, free education abroad if you're smart enough, and free housing programs for new families.

[@wongjefx980]

Qatar Sports Investments does similar investments...bought Padel leagues and merged them. Own soccer team, invest in NBA.

[@RagunathanA]

Amazing video... more curious about the India map in the end 😀

[@TheHound4321]

Very well produced video with entertaining and informative content. Keep up the fantastic work!

[@mactire6045]

The puzzle piece visuals are hilarious.

[@popsiclesbutlikeanancientg59]

Would love to see an episode on racing, since Saudi oil and racecars go hand in hand.

[@HunterSobachers]

Might be interesting for you to research Saudi Arabia's involvement with cybersport too

[@KingGregforever]

Me personally I don’t see anything wrong with what they’re doing, there’s a positive motif behind it which is to make their citizens happy and provide quality entertainment so big ups to Saudi.

[@danielrichardson4868]

Newcastle finished 4th in 2023, not 2022 ( 09:33 )

[@ostricalungimirante]

Awesome channel! 🎉

[@lukabozic5]

Love this channel

[@DIAC1987]

Excellent video, and I agree that throwing the word "sportswashing" to describe Saudi Arabia's recent behavior is a little inaccurate, and if we really want to be honest, almost contradictory considering the people/organizations that runs the teams and leagues in North American sports. I always laugh at those upset at the foundation and existence of LIV Golf for morality reasons but fail to see the irony when they're still supporting PGA Golf despite their connections with companies like Nike.

[@bball767]

Nike and the Saudis are completely different tiers of evil

[@soumyajeetchakrabarty6872]

This has been insightful

[@mk_annan22]

Great amount of research

[@oghenenyerhovwosagbodje5138]

I love the soundtrack for this

[@kstephen88694]

Looking forward to LIV golf

[@yfxgamer80]

MBS bro has gone into a whole new level of growing the economy and making the country better than any king of saudi could have thought

[@nehemiahlihengang3610]

This is good! Way to go!!

[@user-ci4no7zu3y]

Hey, love the videos! May I ask how you do your motion graphics, the map movements etc?

[@abogoni]

another really good video ❤

[@portabattery4124]

Awesome video! I was wondering if you could get this type of coverage on countries like Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Kyrgyzstan. What happened to them. Why are they so behind. And what can they do to raise their economy.

[@abdimoha7752]

unmatched channel fr

[@RodrigoBonino-ft7xg]

Great channel!

[@munaali5670]

Investing in sport is new for Saudi Arabia, but I believe it is the smartest so far. We can see how much momentum the last deals were made.

[@Drexler7]

Then every country is sportwashing lmao SP is talking like Europe have no skeletons in their basement 😂

[@calinho7689]

In Saudi it‘s on a whole different scale.

[@duduimendoza6146]

Please include Esports/Gaming! I noticed in the past years specially this year, they are also attracting the gaming community, with much more and better plans next year.

[@-__506__-]

Well yes, especially considering the crown prince himself has played video games all his life. We're growing by the day. Even now, we're filled to the brim with tourists and Europeans coming to work in the private sector.

[@nassernathan]

This man has a voice I love it

[@carl8790]

I'm a simple person, I see Karim Zidan, I click to watch.

[@Suzaku700]

More and more people find themselves getting incise info from independent journalists without a particular agenda to run except their own views which sometimes may conflict but it’s actually their opinion unlike normal news broadcasters and media. You see it on TikTok and KZbin etc. Just genuine opinions from people in the know of the topics or investigating them counts for so much.

[@zalzalahbuttsaab]

This is good. Thank you. I was very surprised that a professorship exists in Sport and the Global Economy. It seems to be a very niche subject.🙂

[@mohammedalalawi5385]

As a suadi to see some of the comments, here is just wow. They think we only invested in sports and forgotten about new energy. But guess what? Saudi Arabia funding and having deals and partnerships in new clean energy for the future and investing in our own infrastructure. Quite frankly, every couple of months, our government announces new projects in every aspect we can go in to improve our economy and quality of life.

[@LovelyDaffodils-jw2pu]

As a Historian with many muslim friends from different sects there are confusing contradictions in your comment. I hope you can clarify this confusion for us: Being born a muslim doesn’t automatically make one a saint without any agenda or automatically religiously practicing correct? Because there’s alcohol and pork eating muslims who don’t even pray and those who don’t right? So why do YOUR Kings invest their Petro-dollars in living lifestyles which are clearly forbidden in Islam? Your Quran states: in Chapter 17: V 27- Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Satan; and the Satan is to his Lord (himself) ungrateful. Clearly Islam teaches that the poor people has a right on a certain portion of your wealth which surely these kings don’t care when they instead of giving them their rights give - Toilets made of gold to their children. Literally the King’s daughter was gifted a gold toilet. Or when your Crown prince Salman offered 1Million to spend 1 night with Kim Kardashian. How do Saudi muslims and their Government justify these lavish lifestyles while their neighbouring countries like Yemen, Palestine starve to death from hunger and famine? Historians note your Prophet Muhammad saying “He is not a believer whose stomach is filled while the neighbour to his side goes hungry.” Historians also note it was Umar ibn Al Khattab who was asked “O Umar, why don’t you clothe the Ka’bah with silk?” To which he replied “the stomachs of muslims are priority.” Are these children starving and dying not your muslim brothers and sisters? Did Muhammad not live a simple life and died spending all of his wealth and his wife’s wealth a businesswoman and international trader to support humans in need of help? Najd or Nejd is a geographical central region of Saudi Arabia today. Mohammed was quoted saying "O Allah! Bless our Sham and our Yemen". People said, "Our Najd as well". The Prophet again said, "O Allah! Bless our Sham and Yemen". They said again, "Our Najd as well". On that the Prophet said, "There will appear earthquakes and afflictions, and from there will come out the side of the head of Satan". This prophesy is probably referring to the present royal family prince and his father?? Saudi government admits it themselves about “sportswashing” saying so be it. Clearly motivated by political and extreme religious beliefs to infiltrate the global sports stage. Hitler did this too. Dominated sports at one point while killing masses. How is this ethical to the many who genuinely love and support sports and wish nothing from dirty politics? Investing in going more “green” while your brothers starve and die is not a good power move in all history Kings collapsed because of this my friend. Finally, for such Arab kings all I will say is that if “Allah is Al-Wahhaab (The Bestower) then He is Al-Muhsi (The Accounter ) too.” Please give us answers!

[@LovelyDaffodils-jw2pu]

As a Historian with many muslim friends from different sects there are confusing contradictions in your comment. I hope you can clarify this confusion for us: Being born a muslim doesn’t automatically make one a saint without any agenda or automatically religiously practicing correct? Because there’s alcohol and pork eating muslims who don’t even pray and those who don’t right? So why do YOUR Kings invest their Petro-dollars in living lifestyles which are clearly forbidden in Islam? Your Quran states: in Chapter 17: V 27- Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Satan; and the Satan is to his Lord (himself) ungrateful. Clearly Islam teaches that the poor people has a right on a certain portion of your wealth which surely these kings don’t care when they instead of giving them their rights give - Toilets made of gold to their children. Literally the King’s daughter was gifted a gold toilet. Or when your Crown prince Salman offered 1Million to spend 1 night with Kim Kardashian. How do Saudi muslims and their Government justify these lavish lifestyles while their neighbouring countries like Yemen, Palestine starve to death from hunger and famine? Historians note your Prophet Muhammad saying “He is not a believer whose stomach is filled while the neighbour to his side goes hungry.” Historians also note it was Umar ibn Al Khattab who was asked “O Umar, why don’t you clothe the Ka’bah with silk?” To which he replied “the stomachs of muslims are priority.” Are these children starving and dying not your muslim brothers and sisters? Did Muhammad not live a simple life and died spending all of his wealth and his wife’s wealth a businesswoman and international trader to support humans in need of help? Najd or Nejd is a geographical central region of Saudi Arabia today. Mohammed was quoted saying "O Allah! Bless our Sham and our Yemen". People said, "Our Najd as well". The Prophet again said, "O Allah! Bless our Sham and Yemen". They said again, "Our Najd as well". On that the Prophet said, "There will appear earthquakes and afflictions, and from there will come out the side of the head of Satan". This prophesy is probably referring to the present royal family prince and his father?? Saudi government admits it themselves about “sportswashing” saying so be it. Clearly motivated by political and extreme religious beliefs to infiltrate the global sports stage. Hitler did this too. Dominated sports at one point while killing masses. How is this ethical to the many who genuinely love and support sports and wish nothing from dirty politics? Investing in going more “green” while your brothers starve and die is not a good power move in all history Kings collapsed because of this my friend. Finally, for such Arab kings all I will say is that if “Allah is Al-Wahhaab (The Bestower) then He is Al-Muhsi (The Accounter ) too.” Please give us answers!

[@adam248]

Hope this channel will get half a million subscribers before the end of the year

[@Search-Party]

me too

[@Skippydogo]

Great video, but maybe a bit of an oversight. this is also happening in eSports.

[@hitmanhun88]

Great work and video again, love this channel and how it's progressing! Keep it up.

[@Search-Party]

thanks so much for watching

[@JoySingh]

@@Search-Party hey Sam! have really loved all of your videos that you made. Am excited to see how the channel will move forward in the future

[@Search-Party]

What would you want to see more of?

[@JoySingh]

@@Search-Party Honestly, anything that you make :) All the videos are enjoyable

[@gegalvezge]

Your videos, like always👌

[@chainbane]

I don't know if it fits to include it in these videos but Saudi Arabia also hosted massive esports tournaments aswell. Would be fun if you included that too.

[@Search-Party]

Definitely -- lots of investments that we didn't specifically call out, but E-sports is a huge one.

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?.-.,,,.-

[@nomiguda]

Actually it's not McLaren that are affiliated with Saudi Arabia, McLaren are owned by the Bahrain Royal Family, it's Aston Martin with their Aramco title sponsorship.

[@lt.lostjaw8390]

Excellent video, although NUFC is likely to be sold for a huge return on investment given current and projected EPL club valuations

[@d3po607]

the funniest thing is people dont realise how week saudi are. as in if china wanted to do this they would outbuy saudi in less than 6 months if america wanted to do this it would take even less but saudi can currently do this becuase it is needed for their countries survival and those 2 countries i mentioned all have good relationships with saudi as in 40% years of good relationships and those countries have bigger fish to fry

[@-__506__-]

I think the funniest thing here is people don't realize how horrible your English is. "Week" is not the proper spelling for the word weak. That would imply we are seven days.

[@andreasaccardi2189]

As an Italian i'd like you to make a video about the fall of Italian football, cause it's really really bad. Thanks. Keep up the good work.

[@lucubrator4283]

As a German, I wish we had your problems. Your national team is currently European Champion and last season you had a team in the finals of all 3 club competitions. Meanwhile the German Football team hasn't made the top8 in any competition since 2016 and the Bundesliga has had the same club winning for 11 years.

[@andreasaccardi2189]

@@lucubrator4283 Well believe me. The Bundesliga and the whole German football Is wayyy Better than the Italian one.

[@theconqueringram5295]

As someone who has no interest in sports, I find it wild how it's easy to manipulate people with sports. It's kind of disturbing just how a game and force someone into group think and herd mentality...

[@icyBramos]

no interest in sports = escape the martrix, bruh this guy

[@sirsurnamethefirstofhisnam7986]

Just because they haven’t invested into something you’re interested in yet doesn’t mean they won’t later on

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?.--.-.-.

[@thebillryan]

@@ricardoxavier827 What are you withering on about? You're making very little sense.

[@Kufrii]

Hey Sam where’d you get that ballin sweater? Great video btw

[@Search-Party]

Burton ... from like 2014 haha

[@vedantswami768]

What your opinion on the cricket World cup and ICC BCCI

[@nolanchurch4564]

You should include Saudi Arabia's influence in cycling. Saudi Arabia has an ever growing influence in world tour cycling including the Annual Saudi Tour and there are rumors about a new cycling league and Saudi sponsorships.

[@Devanshu_Thakre]

Great video but you have missed the 4th largest sports in the world Cricket Saudi is starting a new cricket league which will be the 2nd largest in the world after IPL for viewers who don't know the IPL is worth more than Premier league and have more viewers also.

[@awijaya2116]

In what world is the IPL worth more than the Premier League? The Prem has 6x the revenue, and generates more revenue per match as well. Prem teams are also valued way higher than the IPL ones, and that’s with the IPL teams being permanent franchises and only 10 of them existing.

[@riderchallenge4250]

​@@awijaya2116IPL actually has bigger worth than PL. IPL teams are also unicorns in itself

[@awijaya2116]

@@riderchallenge4250 I can see certain IPL teams being valued more than the non Top-6 teams in the Prem, but the original comment says the IPL as a league is worth more than the Prem. That's not true by any metric (revenue, revenue per team, revenue per match). Even the most 'valuable' team in the IPL would still fall below the Top 6 in the Prem. And that's with a closed franchise system where the spots are permanent and there's no relegation, meaning even the poorly-performing IPL teams still have high valuations (contrast this to the Prem where the lowest performing team gets relegated, so their valuations are more like Championship teams instead).

[@keshav4408]

Wwe's crown jewel is one of the best event in Saudi Arabia

[@amirbrkovic]

Can you do a video about Saudi Arabia buying Esports please.

[@jamesmalpus7371]

1955 Newcastle won the FA Cup, which isn't a trophy to do with the league it's a separate knockout tournament trophy that runs alongside the various leagues.

[@adrianoropeza2338]

Really liking all of your sports based journalism videos. Great stuff ❤

[@bambusakvevo4861]

There are also pouring money in to Esports, buying teams hosting tournaments

[@babalolaoduodunuga3508]

Ask yourself how many Americans own different sports clubs all over the world and also how western companies especially from Europe who have full access to African minerals. 🤦

[@anthonyworkman2852]

Saudi also invested into PFL A Mixed Martial Arts promotion

[@AndrewPonti]

Such top notch journalism and quality of video content. You guys, along with Johnny and Cleo and Vox and others, are carrying the torch of unbiased and factual journalism in an era where boomers, uh, sorry, a lot of people don't seem to believe the media. Keep it up!

[@aasinno]

Great content, would love to see better graphics than this confusing puzzle pieces, and references same as you did in episode one

[@Raazaaaaa]

Intriguing to see that Saudi have learnt nothing from the failures of Dubai - throwing money at outlandish projects (Newcastle or any other sports washing costs pale in comparison) isn't guaranteed to bring a return let alone long term profits.. They should have focused all their efforts on renewables to become the leader of future energy sources.. Looking forward to see how this pans out over the coming years.

[@deveshbajaj3828]

it does increase soft power though, as mentioned in the video

[@ahmadsameer9536]

Investing in renewables will not make their people happy

[@haruyanto8085]

FIrst make the people happy, then invest in things China is already the leader of, maybe they will become second? Who knows, but I won't be surprised if they start pumping out major renewable infrastructure developments/projects.

[@ricardoxavier827]

IF UEFA allows a fair competitive access super league, 30 teams, 58 games per season, to allow better chances to the clubs out the top5, no money of the world will be able to take out the best footballers of the world. Saudis can pay only because the UEFA super league doesnt exist. Yet?,.-.-,...,-.

[@riderchallenge4250]

​@@deveshbajaj3828soft power is nothing without hardpower. Where do they stand in military, hardware, space, agriculture, manufacturing, IT, software ,R and D at the bottom

[@ilyphysix]

YES! My idea got turned into a video :))

[@everypitchcounts4875]

Dubai started it's own professional baseball league two months ago.

[@Girlboxingnow]

The investment in boxing is particularly important at a time of flux in boxing promotion. While there are still issues in boxing governance as SA develops infrastructure for the sport, it has the opportunity for major influence and the development of an important center. The upcoming Tyson Fury - Francis Ngannou fight on October 28th is another milestone -- and while Fury fighting a former UFC MMA champion has its detractors amongst serious boxing fans, the novel nature of it will attract a wide range of fans, and to the point of the piece, enough star power to attract the support of Saudi fight fans across the spectrum. The Kingdom has even supported women's boxing and has a growing amateur team--as well as opportunities for more elite level professional female boxing championship title matches in the future, especially if they work closely with Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing which continues to invest heavily in its female roster of boxing stars.

[@vincefgv]

I half expected you guys to say you were being sponsored by the Saudis 😂

[@ZumokuYT]

Please keep using the word football over soccer. You’re an international channel now so football is the correct term to use, especially dealing with football in the rest of the world

[@Search-Party]

OK but when I do an MLS story Imma say soccer

[@enryumazino3939]

"fOoTbaLL iS tHe CoRrEct tErM tO uSe, especially dealing with football iN tHe rEsT oF tHe WoRlD", buddy the UK is not the entire world, if the man wants to say soccer then let him be...

[@hmm7258]

​@@enryumazino3939but the world does not...

[@enryumazino3939]

@@hmm7258 does not what? Kindly finish the sentence good sir. I don't want to misinterpret anything

[@bigbrownbear1231]

@@enryumazino3939’the rest of the world’ does not mean the UK… most of the rest of the football playing world says football (or equivalent) and not soccer

[@ashitkotian2396]

It is both, they get good PR in long term and economic benefits that come with it.