Arab and the Gulf States- -An Assault on Football
Written by Isaac Udoh The reaches of Gulf nations influence in world football continues to grow. Arab nations have over the past seasons made mouth watering investments in the world of sports. Most recently, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) through their Sport Clubs Investment and Privatisation Project, have taken a 75 per cent stake in Al-Ittihad as well as Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal and Al-Ahli. The PIF purchased 75 per cent in each club, while their respective non-profit foundations hold 25 per cent ownership of each club. This means that the clubs will be funded directly by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) - and according to most recent filings, PIF is worth over $650 billion in assets. Similarly, the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA), a sovereign wealth fund located in Doha, the capital of Qatar who are worth even more than the PIF are heavily linked with the purchase of Manchester United, Liverpool and even Tottenham . Photo Credit: MENASource This article po...