The club that owns C.Ronaldo is suddenly put up for sale

(Dan Tri) - According to Saudi Arabian media, the country's Public Investment Fund (PIF) plans to sell the country's four biggest clubs, including Al Nassr, the team where C. Ronaldo is playing.

Saudi Arabia's four biggest clubs, Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, Al Ahli and Al Hilal, will all be transferred to PIF from 2023. At that time, the fund will hold 75% of the shares, with the rest belonging to the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Sports .

Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund puts Al Nassr up for sale (Photo: Getty).

This move paved the way for a spending spree in the transfer market, bringing a series of famous stars such as C. Ronaldo, Neymar, Karim Benzema to the Saudi Pro League. However, according to journalist Ahmed Al-Ajlan, PIF is changing its strategy, wanting to divest and look for new investors. The sale will also include the 25% stake held by the Ministry of Sports.

Sources say Al Hilal is at the centre of the ownership race, with Prince Al Waleed bin Talal seen as the frontrunner, ahead of Prince Abdullah bin Mosaad (former Sheffield United owner). Prince Al Waleed is currently an honorary member of Al Hilal, and even used his private Boeing 747 to bring Neymar to the club in 2023.

PIF’s heavy investment in the “big four” and its massive spending campaign are seen as a move to demonstrate its determination to develop football within the framework of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 project. However, the government has recently launched a “Club Financial Efficiency Improvement” project, focusing on budget monitoring, spending control and long-term sustainability.

This summer, all four of Saudi Arabia’s football giants have splashed the cash on the transfer market. Al Hilal spent £76m to bring in Darwin Nunez (Liverpool) and Theo Hernandez (AC Milan). Al Nassr spent £64m on Kingsley Coman (Bayern Munich) and Joao Felix (Chelsea), and extended C. Ronaldo’s contract for two more years, for a total of £492m.

Al Hilal, the club that recently represented Saudi Arabia in the FIFA Club World Cup, is also up for sale (Photo: Getty).

Al Ahli recruited Enzo Millot (Stuttgart) for 27 million pounds, while Al Ittihad spent the most modestly, about 19 million pounds to buy two players Ahmed Al-Julaydan and Hamed Al-Ghamdi.

This figure is still much lower than the summer of 2023, when the total spending of the four Saudi Arabian clubs is approximately 750 million pounds.

Notably, the sale of the four top clubs comes after the Saudi government announced plans to privatize its football teams. Last month, the country's Sports Ministry confirmed the completion of the sale of Al-Kholood to the US-based Harburg Group, while Al-Zulfi and Al-Ansar were transferred to domestic investors.

Recently, the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Sports continued to invite investors interested in other clubs such as Al-Najma and Al-Okhdood, marking the second phase of the privatization project.

If successful, the sale of Al Nassr and the other three major clubs will create an important turning point, opening a new era for Saudi Arabian football. They will shift from a state investment model to a sustainable development based on socialized resources.

Source: https://dantri.com.vn/the-thao/clb-so-huu-cronaldo-bat-ngo-bi-rao-ban-20250823115805148.htm