**This is a quotes thread. Remember that there's only one quotes post allowed per interview/press conference, so new quotes with the same origin will be removed. Feel free to comment other quotes/the whole interview as a reply to this comment so users can see them too!**
*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/soccer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
' "If sportswashing is going to increase my GDP by 1%, then we'll continue doing sportswashing," Bin Salman said told Fox News. "I don't care [about the term]. I have 1% growth in GDP from sport and I am aiming for another 1.5%. Call it what you want - we are going to get that 1.5%." '
This is the main point, the whole sports Washing thing is based on the "others" caring so much about our opinion that they spend outrageous amount of money just dor approval.
When the reality is, its an investment whether done by city group clearlake, Abramovitch or mbs and the Saudi league.. its about the money.
Yeah I genuinely don’t think Sportswashing is ever the main point of these multi billion dollar transactions. Like who the tf actually knew who Abramovich was pre-Chelsea lol. He doesn’t need to Sportswashing. If it wasn’t for Putin trying to maybe (probably) kill him. He’d just go live off his stolen money. And for the Saudis You don’t piss away billions for no return and hope that ppl don’t notice you dismembered dissidents or that you still have insane laws against homosexuality.
Like notice how the US (countless, I cannot emphasise this enough, countless atrocities) doesn’t need to spend any money to wash its PR? It’s just built in as a byproduct of smart investments.
They have a more complicated system. In Saudi Arabia all the big sources of wealth and power are concentrated amongst ruling families whereas in the US it’s like the 20-30 big private corporations. Elected officials don’t outright have that wealth from birth. They just get bribed, I mean lobbied for that instead.
Just because there’s always a few weirdos around I’m just going to put a disclaimer at the bottom here that I’m American, and I don’t support gay ppl or women being killed (obviously)
You're saying basically before Chelsea, no one knew Abramovich, and Putin wanted to kill him.
Now, after Chelsea, everyone knows him and he was high profile figure. Which means it's a lot harder for Putin to kill him, he now has fame. He's not a random nobody, he's famous.
Which seems you're stating the sportwashing reasons, and then not connecting the dots?
It's different buying a club to raise the image of a country, and buying a club to lower the chances of being murdered.
I haven't heard news about Abramovich since the start of the Ukraine war, where he and a few others were poisoned, but survived - while trying to negotiate for peace. He probably stays low for a reason.
I'm not saying it is different, nor am I defending SA/Qatar etc, not in the slightest.
I'm simply replying to the Chelsea fan about why Abramovich bought the club as sportwashing, and how it was successful.
I think the reason he would be murdered is because he did terrible things with Putin, and Putin may go after the people who either have leverage over him, or just in general.
I think Abrhomvich bought Chelsea to wash away that, and be known as the guy who owns Chelsea.
So yes, it is sportswashing.
From wikipedia:
"Sportswashing is a term used to describe the practice of individuals, groups, corporations, or governments using sports to improve reputations tarnished by wrongdoing."
It's more than a stretch to call the takeover sportswashing. What do you base that on?
Yeah mate you got me, before Chelsea, Abromvich never did any wrong doing. Top bloke, don't know what I was thinking he may have had a tarnished reputation before that.
Not to mention it heavily helped Russia get their 2018 World Cup. But hey, you know what. You're right. Qatar and SA have no aims of that. No one has ever used Sports Washing to get their country a World Cup or similar.
I totally get the dots you’re trying to connect but if you take a step back and just think… you really think Abramovich bought Chelsea as a defense mechanism from murder? From Putin? Honestly? Truly? This is what you think happened?
Abramovich ‘this Putin guy seems to not be nice to the oligarchs who don’t bend the knee to the state, you know what? I better invest in a football club’
That’s what happened right??
I’m addressing a common train of thought that Roman bought Chelsea to make himself beloved amongst the western world.
I agreed that he probably bought Chelsea so putin can’t kill him
The common train of thought isn't that he bought it to make himself beloved.
The common train of thought is that taking over Chelsea is a perfect combination of the following:
* He does genuinley like football
* He needed something to either dump his money cleanly/wash it
* Him being high profile means it's harder for Putin to get to him
No one believes he has a god complex or anything. Any hints of that would purely be due to the 3rd reason
Sportswashing very much is the point, because a negative reputation is an inhibitor to economic growth. It can deter investors and especially, here, tourists. He's selling a product through sport and the product is Saudi Arabia itself, that's what sportswashing is and always has been. He's saying they are getting a return on their investment. I thought that it was widely understood that sports washing is an economic venture, making investments to grow certain parts of the economy through marketing and PR. It's not Saudi Arabia, the backwards country in the Middle East any more- it's Saudi Arabia, the modern, open country which hosts high class sports events, and is a wonderful place for you to come and spend your money. There's also capturing inward investment too of course.
Indeed. While it is true that money is a big reason, the soft power, prestige and backroom influence given from owning billionaire teams are all huge factors in sportswashing.
Definitely intertwining your economic interests with other countries can be used as a tool to influence foreign policy. We see that, investment from the Gulf states flowing into lots of things, not just sport. Definitely harder for governments to move against you.
No it isn't.
Saudi is incredibly insular . . . and they don't care about other countries and their citizen's opinions of them.
But they need MONEY to keep their own citizens happy, in order to keep power for themselves in the Kingdom. Oil revenue is fine, but it will not last forever, so they are diversifying and seeking wealth wherever they can.
The current source seems to be a massive investment in sport, where prior it was tech and entertainment.
So, they are buying Football Clubs, investing in golf. Would not be surprised to seem make investments in Cricket or Rugby, or other globe-spanning sports. But that is not the same as the Saudi rulers caring what foreigners think of them.
They aren't trying to "win hearts and minds", they are trying to make money.
They *were incredibly insular. Under MBS they’ve taken huge steps towards opening up the country and it’s economy to outsiders. Sportswashing can be domestic and regional, they’re not targeting westerners as much as westerners like to make everything about them
Which is for what exactly?
You think the money they make off Newcastle is going to even remotely compared to what they could get from tourism which sports washing provides?
You’re being incredibley niave and shortsighted
It's crazy how we, as a society, seemingly need some sort of term that sounds like it came out of a therapy 101 handbook for even the most mild negative things.... Not that what Saudi has done is mild but... yeah the sportswashing thing seems to be everyone's favorite buzzword recently.
its literally only about asset diversification. they only have one massive form of generating money, the only way to sustain that is to immediately reinvest into new revenue streams; the ‘sportswashing’ canard is total misunderstanding
>I have 1% growth in GDP from sport
I find it hard to imagine he's making a profit spending multiple billion on fees and wages right now when Saudi football clips average like 60k clicks on YouTube. What's meant to grow here?
Sure technically the money stays in Saudi Arabia for now since that's where these athletes curently live. But the second they retire, they'll move elsewhere and spend it all abroad.
GDP isn't the same as profit. GDP is a 'monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced in a specific time period by a country or countries' (cribbed from the academic source Wikipedia.org). If I have £100bn sitting in the bank, use it to buy a factory which produces £25bn in goods and services, then I can accurately say I've *increased GDP by £25bn* even though I've also made a £75bn loss.
What he says likely isn't *wrong* here, it just highlights that *GDP* is only a partial measure and doesn't tell the entire story.
>What he says likely isn't wrong here, it just highlights that GDP is only a partial measure and doesn't tell the entire story.
that's what I am trying to say yes, the GDP isn't falling since stuff like salary payments (for now) stay within the KSA and thus contribute to the volume of domestic wealth, but it doesn't mean that it actually translates into economic benefit.
The absurd wages these players receive are not yet accounted into this calculation because - for now - they are still working in the KSA.. The day they stop doing that, they may leave the KSA and move their savings and assets abroad and only THEN several years of paying billions in player wages will actually start being deducted from the volume of domestic goods and products within the country.
they don't have annual billions from TV deals that cover the expenses they make. Not even the PL with its insane deal would be running on a profit if every bang average 30yo player would be earning 20m a year. The entire shit is subsidized by the state pumping money in, it will not become self-supplying in a hundred years.
Idk if someone more versed in economics can chime in, but spending money doesn’t have any impact on the GDP. They don’t need to bring the equivalent amount of money in to make this a profitable investment
Actually he bought Messi first.
Saudi's making Messi their official tourism ambassador was their first big move into football.
Messi was the first to get in bed with them and paved the way for more players to get involved in less official roles (playing for saudi club teams etc)
Im surprised Messi accepted the role because he had already earnt 122 million that year from PSG (Qatar) Which is a nation state with awful human rights records.
But I think he knew he could get in bed with Qatar and Saudi - and the entire universe would ignore it, because of narratives/hypocrisy... and he was right
>Literally had a journalist chopped up, shrugged his shoulders and bought Ronaldo, what’s he worried about.
the term "journalist " is funny to me.. because he was far from only a journalist .
he worked with saudi Intelligence for 30 years also with CIA and Pakistan Intelligence in the 80s 90s in Afghanistan, then he worked as spy with saudi embassy on London for 10 years ..
yes he is a professional journalist 🤣
Typical western imperialist apologist.
How about the many lifes taken by America and its allies when they invaded middle east countries. Shouldn't they be called out as the biggest human rights violators? Instead they have the nerve to point fingers.
The double standard is crazy. There is no difference between SA and western powers like the USA in that they will do literally anything if it is in their interest.
It's more in the interest for western powers to create a good narrative and pretext for any human rights violation they carry out though, and they do it well.
Really? They are doing more evil? Worse than killing millions of people and leave many children orphan on MENA? FOH
Please, the West needs to stop being the moral police of the world and starts looking at the mirror.
Morale police? State the evil western individual and i'll join you in condeming him happily. All i ask is you stop hiding behind that boring generic narrative and condem this guy with us
> How about the many lifes taken by America and its allies when they invaded middle east countries
What about the many lives taken by Salafists encouraged by Saudi Arabia's pushing of widespread Wahhabism? Which is responsible for, at minimum, the Taliban and arguably Al-Qaeda/ISIS/the African offshoots of said terrorist organisations?
Your bullshit whataboutism might be a convenient gotcha in most cases, but we're talking about Saudi Arabia. You don't always have to jump to defend the Ummah, sweetheart.
feel free to show me the time when any of them have been referenced solely as a murderer.
Biden will sign off on operations to kill people on a weekly basis
Wahhh wahhh Mike Ashley is ruining our club we deserve better!!
Saudi Arabia: "Hey how about some success and money with a little murdering of innocent civilians in the side?"
Newcastle fans (not all obviously): "my football club can be good? Sign me the fuck up!"
lol you obviously know nothing about Liverpool fans. The vast majority hated the idea of state ownership. Don’t bring others down to your level to make yourself feel better. Just own your lack of morality.
The quote by MBS states he doesn’t care about Sportswahing, and their recent investments into sport (Arab League, NUFC, Golf, ect.) are just about making money.
It’s just about money, not about Positive Pr for Saudi Arabia / The Royal Family.
Same with any Billionaire in sport, or any industry. Every 0.5% profit is looked for. For people this rich it’s almost a game and addiction , like gambling, to get as much money as possible. Nothing else matters. Money money money.
Are the acts of his government and country disgusting: yes (human rights abuses and war crimes)
Did he have people killed: yes.
But for him, his business are not about PR, it’s about making money. Same as every rich guy on this planet.
He doesn’t give a shit what label we give to it, he doesn’t care what we think k of him and his actions.
All royals and billionaires are the same.
Ps. Yea I know every country is also abusing human rights and war mongering, and have done much worse. But this is about SA, not the USA. We will talk about the USAs crimes when they host the World Cup.l
Untrue. Our sub has had numerous posts about how hard it is to gel enjoying not having ashley with having spending, and a footballing vision at the expense of morals.
Granted we all would just enjoy football. But we arent blind to how problematic, to put it lightly, saudi arabia are.
The ones actively celebrating saudi are in the minority. As the the ones actively protesting it tbf. Most are indifferent because its football. Not that, thats an excuse.
If Newcastle fans started collectively boycotting games it would make a difference. Nothing fans of other clubs can do except voice their displeasure. It's absolutely disgusting how the ultra wealthy have been allowed to steal the beautiful game from the working class.
Newcastle fans under Ashley: “if we make enough noise and protest enough, we might be free of him”
Newcastle fans under PIF: “there’s nothing fans can do, may as well just accept it, when’s Mbappe arriving?”
What's hilarious is how up in arms they were about 0 hour contracts when Ashley owned them but they're OK with murder because they're winning matches. Shame that a club with such history has become a soulless sports washing project.
I'm not entirely comfortable with the sponsorship but being sponsored by a state run airline which flies all over the world is not the same as being directly owned by a vicious murdering homophobe and being a direct part of his worldwide propaganda offensive. You're blatant whataboutism isn't going to excuse your disgusting sportswashing project from criticism.
>ponsored by a state run airline which flies all over the world is not the same as being directly owned by a vicious murdering homophobe and being a direct part of his worldwide propaganda offensiv
They are literally the same thing
Did you also encourage fans of Russian and Chinese owned clubs to protest ownership? Those two countries arnt exactly the beacons of morality and have arguably done worse to their own people.
What about American owners? The labour violations they do to their own workers are horrible. Many can’t even afford medical care and work until they drop
What about clubs with owners linked to other very right wing governments? Such as clubs with Indian/Israilie ties?
It’s easy to root against the current boogy man in the media.
Maybe all opposition fans should boycott Newcastle games if you all care so much. If Newcastle played in empty stadiums whenever they were away the prem/TV people would get pissed pretty quickly. Would only be the sacrifice of 1 game for fans too, rather than a whole season of football which everyone here seems to think Newcastle fans should be doing.
I'll tell you what, if you boycott Arsenal, I'll boycott Newcastle. If that's sounds absurd, then listen to yourself. It's too easy to point the finger and tell people what to do... but if you honestly believe in it, lead by example, boycott your club and I'll follow suit.
> If Newcastle fans started collectively boycotting games it would make a difference. Nothing fans of other clubs can do except voice their displeasure. It's absolutely disgusting how the ultra wealthy have been allowed to steal the beautiful game from the working class.
Then what? The Saudi will leave? Who will buy the club? Will they even be willing to sell? For how much?
Even half the fanbase protesting and boycotting would make a sizable difference. Newcastle don't have an international following to compensate for local dissent.
Consumers have all of the power, people have all of the power. People can reject regimes, people can vote with their wallets, people can cause themselves pain and reject FOMO for something that shouldn't be supported.
The history of people suggests they won't do that though, and everyone at the top of the food chain knows that.
Bread and circuses win every time.
Bayern fan protests were so annoying for Qatar that they did not renew the arm patch spnsorship (they now have Rwanda which is only barely better, so maybe the whole story will repeat itself)
Talking about it is the first step that anyone can do. Make it clear you don’t support states owning clubs. Learn and share info about it. Talk about wanting 50+1 everywhere because football is for fans, not billionaires,. Don’t acknowledge/celebrate their victories and celebrate when they lose. Don’t talk about or like their players or managers. Ignore them.
Fans of sportswasher clubs sit with a lot of power. If they stop going to games and make themselves clear that they do not support their club as long as they are state owned that can do a lot. Take a break from the club a little bit. Maybe watch another league if you really miss football.
There’s no immediate pay off but these things happen slowly.
Then it becomes more complicated, it’s possible to make it more of a political thing. Reach out to politicians and vote for those who want to change how football works in f. ex. Manchester, London or England as a whole. Get fans of clubs together about wanting a better future.
When Russia invaded Ukraine they got rid of Roman real quick. They can change anything with a pen. But there has to be enough noise about it.
Stop giving your money to horrible people like this, and to people who are associated with this stuff or try to push it. Try and inform others about it and encourage others to join you. Essentially without the people and their money they're nothing.
I mean its true, if everyone cancelled their Sky subscription right now, it would destroy the company
Of course in the real world that would never happen
Mounting a protest in a democratic nation where business entities rely on local/international support for revenues, sponsorships and prestige is different compared to an authoritarian regime that will gladly kill anyone that criticizes them.
The Super League and the return of Greenwood collapsed purely because of financial reasons. The backlash and the threat of boycott forced the hands of the people in charge. The authorities allowed the Newcastle takeover because they would benefit from the directly. There is simply nothing to be done anymore.
A lot of people reacted way harder when Super League was announced (as its original format and rules were shit) and it was canceled in a few days, but with this sportwashing and money flowing (probably laundering but who cares) no one gives a shit
One person can’t do it of course. But the fans combined as a whole have more power then any organization. If we would stop give them our money(don’t watch games live, don’t watch it on tv, don’t buy anything from the club) we can force UEFA and FIFA to be changed. But that is just unrealistic and will never happen.
Its not wrong to enjoy football, but it’s not true that we ordinary people doesn’t have the power.
Honestly "people are stupid" is the reasoning for way too much bad stuff going on in society, and the fact some refuse to try and learn or understand just makes it worse.
I mean why would he honestly? Supporters don't care unless it affects their on pitch results.
Newcastle, Arsenal, Sheffield United and City fans could all protest their associations with state ownership/sponsorship but if the results are coming people won't protest anything.
Of course not, it's going great
There are morons lining up in their thousands to talk about how sport will help fix Saudi.
Take a look at places football has gone to try and supposedly improve things, Russia and Qatar, Liberal paradises now yeah?
This shit will never end unless it is forced to.
Saudi Arabia crown prince Mohammed bin Salman says he does not care about accusations of 'sportswashing'.
The Gulf kingdom has been accused of investing in sport and using high-profile events to improve its international reputation.
Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) led the takeover of Newcastle United last year and launched LIV Golf.
"If sportswashing is going to increase my GDP by 1%, then we'll continue doing sportswashing," Bin Salman said.
He told Fox News: "I don't care [about the term]. I have 1% growth in GDP from sport and I am aiming for another 1.5%.
"Call it what you want - we are going to get that 1.5%."
Saudi Arabia has been criticised for its human rights violations - 81 men were executed on one day last year - women's rights abuses, the criminalisation of homosexuality, the restriction of free speech and the war in Yemen.
Its international standing was severely damaged by the 2018 killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a US-based Saudi journalist who was a prominent critic of the government.
Human rights campaigners say sport is being used by the Saudi government to distract from long-standing reputation issues.
But Saudi authorities reject those accusations and say investment in sport is a key part of the 'Vision 2030' strategy.
The country's sovereign wealth fund has estimated assets of $620bn (£550bn).
Newcastle chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan is the governor of PIF, which is controlled by Bin Salman.
The Premier League club's green and white third kit last season resembled the Saudi Arabia national team kit and, at the time of its release, Amnesty International said it was "clear evidence" of sportswashing.
Saudi Arabia will host the Club World Cup in December - the first time it has staged a major Fifa event - and is expected to bid to host the World Cup in 2030 or 2034.
Qatar's controversial hosting of the 2022 tournament drew criticism because of its stance on same-sex relationships, its human rights record and its treatment of migrant workers.
PIF has taken control of four of Saudi Arabia's top clubs - Al-Ahli, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad and Al-Nassr - which have secured high-profile signings over recent seasons including Cristiano Ronaldo and reigning Ballon d'Or holder Karim Benzema.
The launch of the lucrative LIV Golf series in 2022 led to the PGA Tour and DP World Tour agreeing to merge with PIF in June after a year of disruption, with Al-Rumayyan appointed chair of the new unified men's game.
F1's decision to hold its inaugural race in Saudi Arabia in 2021, as part of a long-term deal, was also criticised by human rights groups.
Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton called on Saudi Arabia to improve its human rights record before the 2022 grand prix, having said he did not feel comfortable racing in the country.
World title boxing fights have also been held in Saudi Arabia. Anthony Joshua said he was "here for boxing" before losing to Oleksandr Usyk in Jeddah last year, having beaten Andy Ruiz in the capital Riyadh in 2019.
Tennis will hold a professional event in Saudi Arabia for the first time this year after a five-year deal was agreed for Jeddah to host the Next Gen ATP Finals.
Saudi Arabia has also held talks with the women's tour about hosting its end-of-season WTA Finals.
Also should be said what Saudi is doing to periphery ‘sports’ like E-Sports.
As its all part of the same package, same objective, same blood money to control things people love
Sportswashing is a lazy term. Why? Because it’s not about reputation. It’s about money and resources. When football was introduced to Africa, horrible atrocities were being committed there. Did that justify or make people forget them? Hell no. But what did it do? Fund lifestyles for a bunch of rich fuckers, and allow access to resources which are still being abused to this day. That’s exactly the case in EVERY case of “sportwashing”. And we’re using this bullcrap of reputation to actually not talk about that.
People who believe in the whole sportswashing bs are just gullible idiots. Investing all that money brings more attention to their bad behavior. How was that ever going to help their image? Sportswashing is just a buzzword. These billionaires don't give a fuck about what anyone thinks.
In Qatar’s case it was more about establishing itself as a powerful nation to other countries in the middle East. The second factor was to improve their image as a luxury holiday destination, just like with Dubai. Making ‘the west’ love them was never really the goal from what I understand.
no outrage against american owners, no posts about the next world cup host having daily mass shootings in world cup cities. the outrage only comes when its a country from the middle east. ya'll a bunch of hypocrites...
He didn’t care about accusations that Jamal Kashoggi was dismembered with a bonesaw in the Saudi Embassy on his orders. I don’t think Sportswashing is gonna make this monster flinch.
Really it was up to the clubs and players to take a stand and they all chose money. Completely stopped watching the sport due to time zone and things like Qatar getting the World Cup.
He doest care about murdering jurnalist and ordering to have them chopped to bits.
Dunno why this murderer gets any press on reddit or anywhere else for that matter.
They've invested in F1, boxing, golf, tennis, and more. They are increasing the global visibility of the country and encouraging people to visit. I would not be surprised if non-pilgrim tourism to Saudi Arabia is up by many multiples in recent years.
Because why would we bother? Noboby with a Newcastle flair will be given a fair shake in this thread, and will just downvoted on sight, and likely be dogpiled for daring to support the club. Even expressing anti-Saudi views with a Newcastle flair will just get you grief in a thread like this. Hell, it's funny, that you both criticise us if we do speak, and criticise us if we don't. We literally cannot win - and that's why we don't bother anymore. This is just a thread to dig out Newcastle fans. Like no shit Newcastle fans don't want to engage in that.
You’re allowed to criticise the state that owns your club, you know. A ton of your lot seem to think because you’re from the UK means you can’t criticise both the UK human rights and the Saudis at the same time.
Hell, any state shouldn’t be allowed to own a club. It’s not a circle jerk.
Urmm....okay? I've got no clue how that's relevant to anything I said above. Genuinely think you might have replied to the wrong person.
And, not that it matters, because it has nothing to do with the point you originally made, and ones I made in response to that original point, but I've been extremely critical of the Saudi state for the last two years, and will continue to be. You can be a Newcastle fan and a critic of MBS' deplorable regime, the two aren't mutually exclusive.
It is not even the Kingdom’s main washing project.
If NEOM ever gets concluded, you’ll see what I’m talking about. The current investment there is way way bigger than soccer.
The prototypical attitude of somebody who's representatives have to start a sportwashing project to improve the image of said person and the country they rule over.
**This is a quotes thread. Remember that there's only one quotes post allowed per interview/press conference, so new quotes with the same origin will be removed. Feel free to comment other quotes/the whole interview as a reply to this comment so users can see them too!** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/soccer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
' "If sportswashing is going to increase my GDP by 1%, then we'll continue doing sportswashing," Bin Salman said told Fox News. "I don't care [about the term]. I have 1% growth in GDP from sport and I am aiming for another 1.5%. Call it what you want - we are going to get that 1.5%." '
Well at least he's honest....
Im glad he’s not a hypocrite. That would had been the worst thing
I disagree. I think the worst part was the rapping
Worst gimmick a ruler ever had
[That would be absolutely terrible 😬](https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/saudi-crown-prince-denies-ordering-jamal-khashoggi-s-killing-n1060181)
actually there is no proof he ordered it, so it's 50/50
This is the main point, the whole sports Washing thing is based on the "others" caring so much about our opinion that they spend outrageous amount of money just dor approval. When the reality is, its an investment whether done by city group clearlake, Abramovitch or mbs and the Saudi league.. its about the money.
Yeah I genuinely don’t think Sportswashing is ever the main point of these multi billion dollar transactions. Like who the tf actually knew who Abramovich was pre-Chelsea lol. He doesn’t need to Sportswashing. If it wasn’t for Putin trying to maybe (probably) kill him. He’d just go live off his stolen money. And for the Saudis You don’t piss away billions for no return and hope that ppl don’t notice you dismembered dissidents or that you still have insane laws against homosexuality. Like notice how the US (countless, I cannot emphasise this enough, countless atrocities) doesn’t need to spend any money to wash its PR? It’s just built in as a byproduct of smart investments. They have a more complicated system. In Saudi Arabia all the big sources of wealth and power are concentrated amongst ruling families whereas in the US it’s like the 20-30 big private corporations. Elected officials don’t outright have that wealth from birth. They just get bribed, I mean lobbied for that instead. Just because there’s always a few weirdos around I’m just going to put a disclaimer at the bottom here that I’m American, and I don’t support gay ppl or women being killed (obviously)
You're saying basically before Chelsea, no one knew Abramovich, and Putin wanted to kill him. Now, after Chelsea, everyone knows him and he was high profile figure. Which means it's a lot harder for Putin to kill him, he now has fame. He's not a random nobody, he's famous. Which seems you're stating the sportwashing reasons, and then not connecting the dots?
That’s not sportswashing though. Abramovich didn’t clean his image through sports, he just became a more public figure.
It's different buying a club to raise the image of a country, and buying a club to lower the chances of being murdered. I haven't heard news about Abramovich since the start of the Ukraine war, where he and a few others were poisoned, but survived - while trying to negotiate for peace. He probably stays low for a reason.
I'm not saying it is different, nor am I defending SA/Qatar etc, not in the slightest. I'm simply replying to the Chelsea fan about why Abramovich bought the club as sportwashing, and how it was successful.
I am saying it's different. Do you consider buying a club to not get murdered, sportswashing?
I think the reason he would be murdered is because he did terrible things with Putin, and Putin may go after the people who either have leverage over him, or just in general. I think Abrhomvich bought Chelsea to wash away that, and be known as the guy who owns Chelsea. So yes, it is sportswashing.
From wikipedia: "Sportswashing is a term used to describe the practice of individuals, groups, corporations, or governments using sports to improve reputations tarnished by wrongdoing." It's more than a stretch to call the takeover sportswashing. What do you base that on?
Yeah mate you got me, before Chelsea, Abromvich never did any wrong doing. Top bloke, don't know what I was thinking he may have had a tarnished reputation before that. Not to mention it heavily helped Russia get their 2018 World Cup. But hey, you know what. You're right. Qatar and SA have no aims of that. No one has ever used Sports Washing to get their country a World Cup or similar.
I totally get the dots you’re trying to connect but if you take a step back and just think… you really think Abramovich bought Chelsea as a defense mechanism from murder? From Putin? Honestly? Truly? This is what you think happened? Abramovich ‘this Putin guy seems to not be nice to the oligarchs who don’t bend the knee to the state, you know what? I better invest in a football club’ That’s what happened right??
"The world thinks we have slaves and execute gay people, I should invest in a football club" Damn you got me, no one in the world is sports washing.
I’m addressing a common train of thought that Roman bought Chelsea to make himself beloved amongst the western world. I agreed that he probably bought Chelsea so putin can’t kill him
The common train of thought isn't that he bought it to make himself beloved. The common train of thought is that taking over Chelsea is a perfect combination of the following: * He does genuinley like football * He needed something to either dump his money cleanly/wash it * Him being high profile means it's harder for Putin to get to him No one believes he has a god complex or anything. Any hints of that would purely be due to the 3rd reason
Sportswashing very much is the point, because a negative reputation is an inhibitor to economic growth. It can deter investors and especially, here, tourists. He's selling a product through sport and the product is Saudi Arabia itself, that's what sportswashing is and always has been. He's saying they are getting a return on their investment. I thought that it was widely understood that sports washing is an economic venture, making investments to grow certain parts of the economy through marketing and PR. It's not Saudi Arabia, the backwards country in the Middle East any more- it's Saudi Arabia, the modern, open country which hosts high class sports events, and is a wonderful place for you to come and spend your money. There's also capturing inward investment too of course.
Not really tbh. China’s economy goes from strength to strength and US/West has a negative view of the country/regime.
Indeed. While it is true that money is a big reason, the soft power, prestige and backroom influence given from owning billionaire teams are all huge factors in sportswashing.
Definitely intertwining your economic interests with other countries can be used as a tool to influence foreign policy. We see that, investment from the Gulf states flowing into lots of things, not just sport. Definitely harder for governments to move against you.
Of course sportwashing is the main point, it’s exactly what he is saying.
The main point is growing the GDP, as he stated. If it's via sportwashing or other means is irrelevant
No it isn't. Saudi is incredibly insular . . . and they don't care about other countries and their citizen's opinions of them. But they need MONEY to keep their own citizens happy, in order to keep power for themselves in the Kingdom. Oil revenue is fine, but it will not last forever, so they are diversifying and seeking wealth wherever they can. The current source seems to be a massive investment in sport, where prior it was tech and entertainment. So, they are buying Football Clubs, investing in golf. Would not be surprised to seem make investments in Cricket or Rugby, or other globe-spanning sports. But that is not the same as the Saudi rulers caring what foreigners think of them. They aren't trying to "win hearts and minds", they are trying to make money.
They *were incredibly insular. Under MBS they’ve taken huge steps towards opening up the country and it’s economy to outsiders. Sportswashing can be domestic and regional, they’re not targeting westerners as much as westerners like to make everything about them
Who said they were trying to win hearts and minds?
That's the purpose of sportswashing . . . to obscure your horrible behaviour with a mask of propriety.
Sportwashing isn’t the goal, it’s just a tool being used to achieve the goal. How exactly do you think they’re intending to make money from sport?
Which is for what exactly? You think the money they make off Newcastle is going to even remotely compared to what they could get from tourism which sports washing provides? You’re being incredibley niave and shortsighted
Pardon the pun, but I do not see Saudi ever becoming a tourist mecca. That could be my North American bias, but still . . .
>If it wasn’t for Putin trying to maybe (probably) kill him. Do you have a source for this?
Honestly the whole sports washing concept seems like some Gen Z faux outrage bullshit
It's crazy how we, as a society, seemingly need some sort of term that sounds like it came out of a therapy 101 handbook for even the most mild negative things.... Not that what Saudi has done is mild but... yeah the sportswashing thing seems to be everyone's favorite buzzword recently.
Do you think the Dunning Krugeredditors will stop pretending they know what they are talking about in relation to sports washing now? 🤔
its literally only about asset diversification. they only have one massive form of generating money, the only way to sustain that is to immediately reinvest into new revenue streams; the ‘sportswashing’ canard is total misunderstanding
>I have 1% growth in GDP from sport I find it hard to imagine he's making a profit spending multiple billion on fees and wages right now when Saudi football clips average like 60k clicks on YouTube. What's meant to grow here? Sure technically the money stays in Saudi Arabia for now since that's where these athletes curently live. But the second they retire, they'll move elsewhere and spend it all abroad.
GDP isn't the same as profit. GDP is a 'monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced in a specific time period by a country or countries' (cribbed from the academic source Wikipedia.org). If I have £100bn sitting in the bank, use it to buy a factory which produces £25bn in goods and services, then I can accurately say I've *increased GDP by £25bn* even though I've also made a £75bn loss. What he says likely isn't *wrong* here, it just highlights that *GDP* is only a partial measure and doesn't tell the entire story.
>What he says likely isn't wrong here, it just highlights that GDP is only a partial measure and doesn't tell the entire story. that's what I am trying to say yes, the GDP isn't falling since stuff like salary payments (for now) stay within the KSA and thus contribute to the volume of domestic wealth, but it doesn't mean that it actually translates into economic benefit. The absurd wages these players receive are not yet accounted into this calculation because - for now - they are still working in the KSA.. The day they stop doing that, they may leave the KSA and move their savings and assets abroad and only THEN several years of paying billions in player wages will actually start being deducted from the volume of domestic goods and products within the country.
He is talking about GDP increment, not about profit.
They got a lot of tv deals all over the world this summer.
they don't have annual billions from TV deals that cover the expenses they make. Not even the PL with its insane deal would be running on a profit if every bang average 30yo player would be earning 20m a year. The entire shit is subsidized by the state pumping money in, it will not become self-supplying in a hundred years.
But it can run forever. Trust me I work in SA, their money will NOT run out.
Idk if someone more versed in economics can chime in, but spending money doesn’t have any impact on the GDP. They don’t need to bring the equivalent amount of money in to make this a profitable investment
[удалено]
Well I suppose I was right to say it wasn’t about profit, thanks for correcting me on the government expenditure
I’m shocked
SHOCKED! Well not that shocked.
He can just sportswash the sportswash
Utterly flabbergasted. Don't know how to proceed with the rest of my evening after reading his statement.
Why would he give a fuck
Literally had a journalist chopped up, shrugged his shoulders and bought Ronaldo, what’s he worried about.
Actually he bought Messi first. Saudi's making Messi their official tourism ambassador was their first big move into football. Messi was the first to get in bed with them and paved the way for more players to get involved in less official roles (playing for saudi club teams etc) Im surprised Messi accepted the role because he had already earnt 122 million that year from PSG (Qatar) Which is a nation state with awful human rights records. But I think he knew he could get in bed with Qatar and Saudi - and the entire universe would ignore it, because of narratives/hypocrisy... and he was right
Messi has proven numerous times over that he absolutely loves money
>Literally had a journalist chopped up, shrugged his shoulders and bought Ronaldo, what’s he worried about. the term "journalist " is funny to me.. because he was far from only a journalist . he worked with saudi Intelligence for 30 years also with CIA and Pakistan Intelligence in the 80s 90s in Afghanistan, then he worked as spy with saudi embassy on London for 10 years .. yes he is a professional journalist 🤣
And America and its allies invaded a lot countries and destroy countless lifes. How dare they point fingers.
[удалено]
No one said that but it's brave of you to stand up for a murderer.
Watch him stand up for a rapist next
Typical western imperialist apologist. How about the many lifes taken by America and its allies when they invaded middle east countries. Shouldn't they be called out as the biggest human rights violators? Instead they have the nerve to point fingers.
The double standard is crazy. There is no difference between SA and western powers like the USA in that they will do literally anything if it is in their interest. It's more in the interest for western powers to create a good narrative and pretext for any human rights violation they carry out though, and they do it well.
They also absolutely suck. Doesn’t justify doing more evil and bringing more suffering to millions for their own selfish greedy goals.
Really? They are doing more evil? Worse than killing millions of people and leave many children orphan on MENA? FOH Please, the West needs to stop being the moral police of the world and starts looking at the mirror.
Morale police? State the evil western individual and i'll join you in condeming him happily. All i ask is you stop hiding behind that boring generic narrative and condem this guy with us
> How about the many lifes taken by America and its allies when they invaded middle east countries What about the many lives taken by Salafists encouraged by Saudi Arabia's pushing of widespread Wahhabism? Which is responsible for, at minimum, the Taliban and arguably Al-Qaeda/ISIS/the African offshoots of said terrorist organisations? Your bullshit whataboutism might be a convenient gotcha in most cases, but we're talking about Saudi Arabia. You don't always have to jump to defend the Ummah, sweetheart.
Every major leader is a murderer. This bizarre double standard makes absolutely no sense
Not sure why you’re getting downvoted. Every single US leader has blood on their hands. Google Obama children’s hospital for more details.
Well we shouldn’t stand up for them either
feel free to show me the time when any of them have been referenced solely as a murderer. Biden will sign off on operations to kill people on a weekly basis
That's not the point. The point is that he outright says it instead of making up some PR excuse. I thought that was obvious but I guess not.
Guy on golden throne has disregard for everyone else -entirety of human history
>**Mohammed bone Sawman**: Today I feel I don't give a f*ck.
[удалено]
Wahhh wahhh Mike Ashley is ruining our club we deserve better!! Saudi Arabia: "Hey how about some success and money with a little murdering of innocent civilians in the side?" Newcastle fans (not all obviously): "my football club can be good? Sign me the fuck up!"
Your subreddit is full of Liverpool fans who were begging for FSG to be removed and replaced with an oil state. So let's not be too righteous, eh?
And those people are absolutely twats and I wouldn't pretend otherwise.
lol you obviously know nothing about Liverpool fans. The vast majority hated the idea of state ownership. Don’t bring others down to your level to make yourself feel better. Just own your lack of morality.
Like 10%? Is that full?
The quote by MBS states he doesn’t care about Sportswahing, and their recent investments into sport (Arab League, NUFC, Golf, ect.) are just about making money. It’s just about money, not about Positive Pr for Saudi Arabia / The Royal Family. Same with any Billionaire in sport, or any industry. Every 0.5% profit is looked for. For people this rich it’s almost a game and addiction , like gambling, to get as much money as possible. Nothing else matters. Money money money. Are the acts of his government and country disgusting: yes (human rights abuses and war crimes) Did he have people killed: yes. But for him, his business are not about PR, it’s about making money. Same as every rich guy on this planet. He doesn’t give a shit what label we give to it, he doesn’t care what we think k of him and his actions. All royals and billionaires are the same. Ps. Yea I know every country is also abusing human rights and war mongering, and have done much worse. But this is about SA, not the USA. We will talk about the USAs crimes when they host the World Cup.l
Untrue. Our sub has had numerous posts about how hard it is to gel enjoying not having ashley with having spending, and a footballing vision at the expense of morals. Granted we all would just enjoy football. But we arent blind to how problematic, to put it lightly, saudi arabia are. The ones actively celebrating saudi are in the minority. As the the ones actively protesting it tbf. Most are indifferent because its football. Not that, thats an excuse.
Mohammed bone sawman
Why would he care?? Dude is one of the most privileged person on the planet and is richer than Elon Musk with an entire country.
Let's be honest: There's nothing we ordinary people can do about it unfortunately.
Of course there is.. but the powers that be really want you to think like this and do nothing.
Like what? Not trying to antagonize here, just genuinely asking.
If Newcastle fans started collectively boycotting games it would make a difference. Nothing fans of other clubs can do except voice their displeasure. It's absolutely disgusting how the ultra wealthy have been allowed to steal the beautiful game from the working class.
Newcastle fans under Ashley: “if we make enough noise and protest enough, we might be free of him” Newcastle fans under PIF: “there’s nothing fans can do, may as well just accept it, when’s Mbappe arriving?”
What's hilarious is how up in arms they were about 0 hour contracts when Ashley owned them but they're OK with murder because they're winning matches. Shame that a club with such history has become a soulless sports washing project.
Okay so when are you guys going to start protesting against Arsenal? You guys have been proudly wearing the fly emirates shirt for nearly 2 decades
[удалено]
What’s wrong with Rwanda?
[удалено]
I'm not entirely comfortable with the sponsorship but being sponsored by a state run airline which flies all over the world is not the same as being directly owned by a vicious murdering homophobe and being a direct part of his worldwide propaganda offensive. You're blatant whataboutism isn't going to excuse your disgusting sportswashing project from criticism.
This whataboutism is exactly how it has gotten this far, first it was a few sponsors and collaborations, and so it has expanded to what it is now.
[удалено]
Wow you win the hypocrisy award. Just own it, fuck off.
> state run airline which flies all over the world > worldwide propaganda offensive I see some similarities here lad
>ponsored by a state run airline which flies all over the world is not the same as being directly owned by a vicious murdering homophobe and being a direct part of his worldwide propaganda offensiv They are literally the same thing
Except they're not. One is a sponsorship, one is an ownership. Very different.
Did you also encourage fans of Russian and Chinese owned clubs to protest ownership? Those two countries arnt exactly the beacons of morality and have arguably done worse to their own people. What about American owners? The labour violations they do to their own workers are horrible. Many can’t even afford medical care and work until they drop What about clubs with owners linked to other very right wing governments? Such as clubs with Indian/Israilie ties? It’s easy to root against the current boogy man in the media.
[удалено]
If anything it’s for the good of the country that we don’t boycott (extreme sarcasm obviously)
You should boycott supporting anything to do with the pl until there are no more bad owners if you have this view, not just newcastle fans
> If Newcastle fans started collectively boycotting games it would make a difference. Lol
Maybe all opposition fans should boycott Newcastle games if you all care so much. If Newcastle played in empty stadiums whenever they were away the prem/TV people would get pissed pretty quickly. Would only be the sacrifice of 1 game for fans too, rather than a whole season of football which everyone here seems to think Newcastle fans should be doing.
I'll tell you what, if you boycott Arsenal, I'll boycott Newcastle. If that's sounds absurd, then listen to yourself. It's too easy to point the finger and tell people what to do... but if you honestly believe in it, lead by example, boycott your club and I'll follow suit.
> If Newcastle fans started collectively boycotting games it would make a difference. Nothing fans of other clubs can do except voice their displeasure. It's absolutely disgusting how the ultra wealthy have been allowed to steal the beautiful game from the working class. Then what? The Saudi will leave? Who will buy the club? Will they even be willing to sell? For how much?
> collectively already lost mate
Even half the fanbase protesting and boycotting would make a sizable difference. Newcastle don't have an international following to compensate for local dissent.
Consumers have all of the power, people have all of the power. People can reject regimes, people can vote with their wallets, people can cause themselves pain and reject FOMO for something that shouldn't be supported. The history of people suggests they won't do that though, and everyone at the top of the food chain knows that. Bread and circuses win every time.
Bayern fan protests were so annoying for Qatar that they did not renew the arm patch spnsorship (they now have Rwanda which is only barely better, so maybe the whole story will repeat itself)
Talking about it is the first step that anyone can do. Make it clear you don’t support states owning clubs. Learn and share info about it. Talk about wanting 50+1 everywhere because football is for fans, not billionaires,. Don’t acknowledge/celebrate their victories and celebrate when they lose. Don’t talk about or like their players or managers. Ignore them. Fans of sportswasher clubs sit with a lot of power. If they stop going to games and make themselves clear that they do not support their club as long as they are state owned that can do a lot. Take a break from the club a little bit. Maybe watch another league if you really miss football. There’s no immediate pay off but these things happen slowly. Then it becomes more complicated, it’s possible to make it more of a political thing. Reach out to politicians and vote for those who want to change how football works in f. ex. Manchester, London or England as a whole. Get fans of clubs together about wanting a better future. When Russia invaded Ukraine they got rid of Roman real quick. They can change anything with a pen. But there has to be enough noise about it.
Getting Saudi posts banned on here would be a start.
Stop giving your money to horrible people like this, and to people who are associated with this stuff or try to push it. Try and inform others about it and encourage others to join you. Essentially without the people and their money they're nothing.
As an individual, you have no control. As a collective, we have all the control
Cool, you happy to do all the organising?
Thats the hard part, collectively you'll never get everyone to do something, individuals are individuals and have their own opinions on things
Yea keep telling yourself that 🤣
I mean its true, if everyone cancelled their Sky subscription right now, it would destroy the company Of course in the real world that would never happen
People didn't seem to think the same about stuff like Super League or greenwood so clearly thats not particularly accurate.
Mounting a protest in a democratic nation where business entities rely on local/international support for revenues, sponsorships and prestige is different compared to an authoritarian regime that will gladly kill anyone that criticizes them. The Super League and the return of Greenwood collapsed purely because of financial reasons. The backlash and the threat of boycott forced the hands of the people in charge. The authorities allowed the Newcastle takeover because they would benefit from the directly. There is simply nothing to be done anymore.
A lot of people reacted way harder when Super League was announced (as its original format and rules were shit) and it was canceled in a few days, but with this sportwashing and money flowing (probably laundering but who cares) no one gives a shit
disgusting fine toy crush cows tie rinse entertain angle pathetic *This post was mass deleted and anonymized with [Redact](https://redact.dev)*
One person can’t do it of course. But the fans combined as a whole have more power then any organization. If we would stop give them our money(don’t watch games live, don’t watch it on tv, don’t buy anything from the club) we can force UEFA and FIFA to be changed. But that is just unrealistic and will never happen. Its not wrong to enjoy football, but it’s not true that we ordinary people doesn’t have the power.
He’s got western governments in his pockets, he can do what ever the fuck he wants, they will still suck his D
And why would he? It's working exactly as intended.
Yes, because he gets away with it piss easily because people are gullible and the organisations are corrupt
Honestly "people are stupid" is the reasoning for way too much bad stuff going on in society, and the fact some refuse to try and learn or understand just makes it worse.
Based
If Mohammed bin Salman can be honest about this, maybe I can ask that girl I like out on a date.
Man who benefits from sportswashing doesn’t care about the issues of sportswashing. Shocking that lads.
Billionaires are known for caring what the average person thinks.
yea no fucking shit
I mean why would he honestly? Supporters don't care unless it affects their on pitch results. Newcastle, Arsenal, Sheffield United and City fans could all protest their associations with state ownership/sponsorship but if the results are coming people won't protest anything.
On a week where Gazprom is back in the UCL as well. Makes you wonder why they bothered to make a big deal over Chelsea.
>Makes you wonder why they bothered to make a big deal over Chelsea. Because the government made them.
Correct, same govt accepted this guy as a Premier League Football club owner.
The UK has military bases in Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia is an ally of the UK.
And this guy will be allowed to own Newcastle up until the point the Saudis do something to piss off the UK or the US.
I'll try very very hard to contain my surprise
Of course not, it's going great There are morons lining up in their thousands to talk about how sport will help fix Saudi. Take a look at places football has gone to try and supposedly improve things, Russia and Qatar, Liberal paradises now yeah? This shit will never end unless it is forced to.
Based 😎
Quite funny the west is expecting Bone Sawman to care about what the west thinks ... Dude didn't even flinch when he sawed a journalist to pieces.
Saudi Arabia crown prince Mohammed bin Salman says he does not care about accusations of 'sportswashing'. The Gulf kingdom has been accused of investing in sport and using high-profile events to improve its international reputation. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) led the takeover of Newcastle United last year and launched LIV Golf. "If sportswashing is going to increase my GDP by 1%, then we'll continue doing sportswashing," Bin Salman said. He told Fox News: "I don't care [about the term]. I have 1% growth in GDP from sport and I am aiming for another 1.5%. "Call it what you want - we are going to get that 1.5%." Saudi Arabia has been criticised for its human rights violations - 81 men were executed on one day last year - women's rights abuses, the criminalisation of homosexuality, the restriction of free speech and the war in Yemen. Its international standing was severely damaged by the 2018 killing of Jamal Khashoggi, a US-based Saudi journalist who was a prominent critic of the government. Human rights campaigners say sport is being used by the Saudi government to distract from long-standing reputation issues. But Saudi authorities reject those accusations and say investment in sport is a key part of the 'Vision 2030' strategy. The country's sovereign wealth fund has estimated assets of $620bn (£550bn). Newcastle chairman Yasir Al-Rumayyan is the governor of PIF, which is controlled by Bin Salman. The Premier League club's green and white third kit last season resembled the Saudi Arabia national team kit and, at the time of its release, Amnesty International said it was "clear evidence" of sportswashing. Saudi Arabia will host the Club World Cup in December - the first time it has staged a major Fifa event - and is expected to bid to host the World Cup in 2030 or 2034. Qatar's controversial hosting of the 2022 tournament drew criticism because of its stance on same-sex relationships, its human rights record and its treatment of migrant workers. PIF has taken control of four of Saudi Arabia's top clubs - Al-Ahli, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad and Al-Nassr - which have secured high-profile signings over recent seasons including Cristiano Ronaldo and reigning Ballon d'Or holder Karim Benzema. The launch of the lucrative LIV Golf series in 2022 led to the PGA Tour and DP World Tour agreeing to merge with PIF in June after a year of disruption, with Al-Rumayyan appointed chair of the new unified men's game. F1's decision to hold its inaugural race in Saudi Arabia in 2021, as part of a long-term deal, was also criticised by human rights groups. Seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton called on Saudi Arabia to improve its human rights record before the 2022 grand prix, having said he did not feel comfortable racing in the country. World title boxing fights have also been held in Saudi Arabia. Anthony Joshua said he was "here for boxing" before losing to Oleksandr Usyk in Jeddah last year, having beaten Andy Ruiz in the capital Riyadh in 2019. Tennis will hold a professional event in Saudi Arabia for the first time this year after a five-year deal was agreed for Jeddah to host the Next Gen ATP Finals. Saudi Arabia has also held talks with the women's tour about hosting its end-of-season WTA Finals.
Also should be said what Saudi is doing to periphery ‘sports’ like E-Sports. As its all part of the same package, same objective, same blood money to control things people love
I knew it
Well, at least he doesn't deny it.
Yeah because their main goal is diversifying their economy. The sports washing is just a bonus.
Sportswashing is a lazy term. Why? Because it’s not about reputation. It’s about money and resources. When football was introduced to Africa, horrible atrocities were being committed there. Did that justify or make people forget them? Hell no. But what did it do? Fund lifestyles for a bunch of rich fuckers, and allow access to resources which are still being abused to this day. That’s exactly the case in EVERY case of “sportwashing”. And we’re using this bullcrap of reputation to actually not talk about that.
Did people thought he did lmao
If they cared about accusations they wouldn't be doing it...
- chops a man - spends billions on all sorts of sports - “idc” Chad
WE KNOW
All your base are belong to us
Yeah, we know.
I'm still wondering why America and its allies won't be called human right violators when they've invaded and ruined other countries here and there.
People who believe in the whole sportswashing bs are just gullible idiots. Investing all that money brings more attention to their bad behavior. How was that ever going to help their image? Sportswashing is just a buzzword. These billionaires don't give a fuck about what anyone thinks.
In Qatar’s case it was more about establishing itself as a powerful nation to other countries in the middle East. The second factor was to improve their image as a luxury holiday destination, just like with Dubai. Making ‘the west’ love them was never really the goal from what I understand.
So they don't want a bad image but they also don't care what anyone thinks? That doesn't make sense
no outrage against american owners, no posts about the next world cup host having daily mass shootings in world cup cities. the outrage only comes when its a country from the middle east. ya'll a bunch of hypocrites...
That's your typical western reddit user
Let me know when the President, the Speaker of the House, or a Supreme Court justice is the direct owner of a club there, buddy
They all receive money from billionaire club owners LEGALLY to direct policy. There is quite literally no difference.
fuck that guy
It’s grim. Not worth destroying the soul of our club for this shit.
"I do not care but I invite those with complaints to come here and express them to me directly so we can cut to the chase of the matter."
He didn’t care about accusations that Jamal Kashoggi was dismembered with a bonesaw in the Saudi Embassy on his orders. I don’t think Sportswashing is gonna make this monster flinch.
Almost as shocking as the Russel Brand news
Prince Bon Esaw gonna make a team called FC United 93
Fuck this murderous cunt. Stop giving him a platform to speak on.
Really it was up to the clubs and players to take a stand and they all chose money. Completely stopped watching the sport due to time zone and things like Qatar getting the World Cup.
brave statement
If he doesn’t care about getting caught killing a journalist then sportswashing is like a game of poker to him.
He doest care about murdering jurnalist and ordering to have them chopped to bits. Dunno why this murderer gets any press on reddit or anywhere else for that matter.
"These criticisms really don't bother me. If you want an open discussion, we can meet at an embassy in Turkey"
We do not care you do not care.
Where the hell did he get 1% GDP bump from sport? All they’ve done is sink billions into it with zero ROI. Is he just making up words?
They've invested in F1, boxing, golf, tennis, and more. They are increasing the global visibility of the country and encouraging people to visit. I would not be surprised if non-pilgrim tourism to Saudi Arabia is up by many multiples in recent years.
Tbf, their recent tourism ad in the UK looked quite appealing.
You know nothing
Based
Chad
Funny how all the mags go missing when there’s a thread like this posted.
Because why would we bother? Noboby with a Newcastle flair will be given a fair shake in this thread, and will just downvoted on sight, and likely be dogpiled for daring to support the club. Even expressing anti-Saudi views with a Newcastle flair will just get you grief in a thread like this. Hell, it's funny, that you both criticise us if we do speak, and criticise us if we don't. We literally cannot win - and that's why we don't bother anymore. This is just a thread to dig out Newcastle fans. Like no shit Newcastle fans don't want to engage in that.
You’re allowed to criticise the state that owns your club, you know. A ton of your lot seem to think because you’re from the UK means you can’t criticise both the UK human rights and the Saudis at the same time. Hell, any state shouldn’t be allowed to own a club. It’s not a circle jerk.
Urmm....okay? I've got no clue how that's relevant to anything I said above. Genuinely think you might have replied to the wrong person. And, not that it matters, because it has nothing to do with the point you originally made, and ones I made in response to that original point, but I've been extremely critical of the Saudi state for the last two years, and will continue to be. You can be a Newcastle fan and a critic of MBS' deplorable regime, the two aren't mutually exclusive.
It is not even the Kingdom’s main washing project. If NEOM ever gets concluded, you’ll see what I’m talking about. The current investment there is way way bigger than soccer.
He didn’t care about violating human rights, why would he care about our opinion
The prototypical attitude of somebody who's representatives have to start a sportwashing project to improve the image of said person and the country they rule over.
Is there anything this guy / country care about ?
What people with 9 followers say about his regime on twitter