Sure, they are laundering their reputation, but that is far from all they are doing. MBS has really made a lot of dramatic changes that were completely unthinkable even five years ago. He has done some terrible things too but I don't doubt for a second that the Saudi omelette required some broken eggs.
At the end of the day, I don't think it is helpful to see the world in simplistic good-and-evil terms. He is a net positive and better than anything we could have hoped for.
Going beyond questions of politics and ethics - two words that are difficult to work into the same sentence - does Saudi Arabia and the region have the interest and passion needed to maintain a major, expensive, soccer league? In the United States, we tried in the 60s, 70s and 80s, with the North American Soccer League (NASL) by importing expensive players, but the interest just wasn't there. It was not until the late 90s with the growth of leagues for boys and girls, men and women, that the US was able to make a go with Major League Soccer (MLS) a more financially responsible organization than NASL.
The Saudis certainly have the money to maintain a flashy, expensive, league as a spectacle, but is there the interest to keep fans coming out to matches or will expensive stars play in half empty stadia?
Sure, they are laundering their reputation, but that is far from all they are doing. MBS has really made a lot of dramatic changes that were completely unthinkable even five years ago. He has done some terrible things too but I don't doubt for a second that the Saudi omelette required some broken eggs.
At the end of the day, I don't think it is helpful to see the world in simplistic good-and-evil terms. He is a net positive and better than anything we could have hoped for.
The "broken eggs" includes the Saudis murdering hundreds of migrants at the Yemen border. Let's not rationalize evil.
Going beyond questions of politics and ethics - two words that are difficult to work into the same sentence - does Saudi Arabia and the region have the interest and passion needed to maintain a major, expensive, soccer league? In the United States, we tried in the 60s, 70s and 80s, with the North American Soccer League (NASL) by importing expensive players, but the interest just wasn't there. It was not until the late 90s with the growth of leagues for boys and girls, men and women, that the US was able to make a go with Major League Soccer (MLS) a more financially responsible organization than NASL.
The Saudis certainly have the money to maintain a flashy, expensive, league as a spectacle, but is there the interest to keep fans coming out to matches or will expensive stars play in half empty stadia?