The acquisition of a Saudi club by American capital marks the beginning of "internationalization" for the Saudi league?

Written by Han Bing For the affluent Saudi league, this is a landmark event—on July 24, the American Habog Group purchased 100% of the shares of Al-Rass Eternal Club in the Saudi Pro League. Saudi media believe this indicates the start of the league's "internationalization," proving that Saudi clubs are considered valuable investments by foreign investors.

Ben Habog, the 41-year-old American owner of Habog Group, is a well-known managing partner at MSA Capital, a private equity firm with over $2 billion in fund capital. Sovereign funds from more than a dozen Middle Eastern countries are long-term investors, including the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF). The PIF holds stakes in major clubs like Newcastle in the Premier League, as well as Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli in Saudi Arabia, all directly controlled by the Saudi royal family.

Habog and his management at MSA Capital have close ties with the Saudi Public Investment Fund. This acquisition follows their investment in the Spanish club Cadiz (6.5% stake) in 2021, marking their second football club investment. The foreign acquisition of Saudi clubs represents a significant strategic shift towards internationalization for the Saudi league.

Previously, Saudi professional clubs were owned by the Saudi Ministry of Sports. Starting in 2023, they began "privatization" under the control of consortiums. The first batch of "privatized" clubs included the four major teams, with the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) acquiring 75% of their shares. Last year, Al-Qadisiyah was controlled by the state-owned oil company Aramco, and Neom was controlled by the New City Construction Fund, making it the second "privatized" club.

This summer, the Saudi Ministry of Sports approved the "privatization" of six more clubs, including top league teams Al-Najd Canal and Al-Rass Eternal, as well as second-tier teams Sofi FC and Seka Kai Arabism, and third-tier teams Medina Fusi FC and Dammam Revival, fully opening up to local and foreign consortiums.

On July 24, in addition to Al-Rass Eternal being acquired by foreign capital, Sofi and Medina Fusi also completed their "privatization," although the new owners are all local Saudi consortiums. Thus far, 11 clubs in Saudi Arabia have completed "privatization," with the Saudi Football Association aiming to enhance the competitiveness of the league.

It is worth noting that American capital had already begun to intervene in club affairs before the acquisition, as Al-Rass Eternal dismissed Romanian coach Contra just one day before Habog Group announced the acquisition. The former Guangzhou R&F head coach was appointed on July 2 but was dismissed without having led the team in any matches. According to the Saudi newspaper Al-Middle East, the American owners believed Contra was not high-profile enough, and after the acquisition, Habog aims to bring in more renowned foreign coaches and players to help Al-Rass Eternal, who ranked ninth last season, at least maintain a spot in the upper half of the standings and strive to enter the Asian arena.

In the 2023/24 season, despite the Saudi league acquiring several star players such as Neymar, Benzema, Firmino, Milinković, and Kanté, the majority of clubs suffer from very low attendance due to the monopoly of the four major clubs, and the so-called international influence is not as expected.

Last summer, promoted team Al-Qadisiyah, backed by Aramco, became a new force, breaking the monopoly of the four major clubs. This summer, Neom, supported by the New City Construction Fund with hundreds of billions of dollars, made significant purchases in the market. However, what truly delighted Saudi officials was the acquisition of Al-Rass Eternal by Habog Group, marking the first foreign-owned club in the Saudi league and taking the first step towards "internationalization."

The Saudi league hopes to attract more foreign capital for club acquisitions, aiming for all three levels of professional league clubs to be "privatized," especially targeting at least 3 to 5 foreign-controlled clubs in the top league to maintain the Saudi league's leading advantage in Asia. Currently, only a few clubs in other top Asian leagues have foreign investments, and majority control is quite rare.