Those people ain't doing shit about decapitations in the Saudia Arabia, cause they can't do shit.
Posting big ass text on Instagram doesn't count as doing 'something'.
Official: Karim Benzema leaves Real Madrid
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Those people ain't doing shit about decapitations in the Saudia Arabia, cause they can't do shit.
Posting big ass text on Instagram doesn't count as doing 'something'.
Who says they are doing anything?
Nope, zero taxes.
The US is one of the rare counties that taxes its residents no matter where they are in the world. As far as I'm aware no European country does this.
Yeah no income tax in Saudi Arabia.
Thanks. I was wondering if my quick search was accurate, the tax agreements for french citizens means that only certain incomes made in France are taxable otherwise if they are SA residents there are no taxes outside of SA taxes for businesses and other similar things.
Bang average player.
They're signing these players as Future Ambassadors for their WC bid. This will likely continue till 2030 and unlike China they dont really have strong feelings towards generating their own homegrown superstars.
Answer honestly. Why do you think they pay 100s of millions in wages every year for "over the top" footballers with hundreds of millions followers on social media? The clubs they go to has total revenues of less than half of these players individual yearly wages. The math doesn't add up. Do you really think it isn't to clean the League's and country's reputation in the west? The west is their most important business partners and they obviously care about what the west thinks. They want legitimation for how they run their country and to look like an attractive business partner and holiday destination, and this is how they do it. These stars go in there with open eyes and accept to be tools to be used in this process. They also quite clearly show they can be bought for money and don't have any morals. These stars have a choice between accepting to be a sportswashing tool and distancing themselves from it, or even better: openly say no and highlight that sportswashing as a problem.
Ronaldo's move and Benzema's move (if it comes to that) will be listed in the dictionary as the definition of sportswashing along with LIV golf and the WC.
If you don't see this, well, then you're part of the problem and proof their strategy is already working.
Modric and Ramos to follow?
Sure, Karim. Now name 10 players playing in the league without googling. That smile gives me very "I hate being here but I get so much money I don't care" vibes.
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Wonder how long it'll be until the Saudi bubble bursts like China's did.
A 100M bid for Tony Martial then.
Correct me if I’m wrong but the Chinese bubble burst because the Chinese government stepped in and stopped it, and they were done mostly by private businesses?
I imagine most of these mega Saudi deals are green lighted/funded by the powers that be in some way?
No you might very well be correct, it's me who's ignorant about why the hype ended so quick. And I'm sure the state backs the Saudi league but it'll be interesting to see to what effect and for how long.
When the oil runs out probably.
It will probably be the new spot for glamor players to go into semi retirement, like MLS was. Then there will be some mid tier players who will go there in their prime, like Oscar, Carrasco, Asamoah Gyan who went to China, however I don’t think it will have any huge effect overall.
Amnesty internationals latest comment to footballers signing gargantual contracts with state owned clubs in Saudi Arabia:
"Football players must make their own choices when it comes to their careers. They must not pretend that these things does not happen (human rights violations etc.). By accepting transfers like this (Benzema going to Al-Ittihad) to Saudi Arabia, they become a piece of a state project that strenghtens the regime and contributes to build it's reputation, while putting the victims of human rights violations in the shadow"
The four biggest clubs in the Saudi Pro League are stateowned. Benzema and Ronaldo are literally getting paid by the regime itself to build Saudi Arabias reputation.
Tell me with a straight face this is not sportswashing.
It's the pure definition of it.
These footballers are already filthy rich and don't lack other lucrative job offers.
Why do people who have everything and have the opportunity to do good, choose this? It's just mindblowing to me that people can have this mindset in 2023. The greed has no limits. Fans supporting them in this is just as mindblowing.
I’m not disagreeing with your post at all, and I agree with a heck of a lot you’ve said, but I’ve read (true or not I don’t know) that as part of the deal Saudi’s had agreed to build a number of hospitals in his name (again, where I don’t know)
if I’m his mind he can get a number of hospitals built and help hundreds, if not thousands, of people (something he can only do by signing with them) then he might be justifying it and it’s not all about the $$$
of course, I’m sure most of it is about the money or he’d default most of his £100m net salary to build a few more
Hard to say no to 200 million a year. I reckon I'd sign for Pyongyang Rovers and let Kim Jong-Un beat me at golf everyday for that.
It's not and that's the issue. Let's start with this statement, I do agree that these footballers are being greedy and one could criticize them for it which is something that I have done in the Messi thread weeks ago with the same conclusion that you wrote.
Now Sportwashing or any versions of whitewashing are fairly specific, they concerns the deliberate attempt to deflect or move attention from something. Saudi Arabia aren't deflecting anything, they brag about their misdeeds and the west somehow champion them. What they are doing here isn't whitewashing, it's investing their billions into activities that they deem lucrative long term and putting the likes of Qatar or UAE in their place which in their opinion is under their feet.
And to be clear at no point, am I defending SA, I'm not suggesting that they have good and benevolent intentions. My points are that they don't give a damn about whitewashing and they have more selfcentered motives.
You guys are all wrong. He joined because it's a Muslim country.
I've been saying this for years
I for one eagerly await his next promo video
What? Are you suggesting he wouldn't have signed for Kosovo's "Balkani FC" or Tunisia's "Club Africain"?What a load of crap.
Saudi is nothing like the west and culturally what he's saying makes sense. There are a lot of rules there especially for women. Could be quite a difficult place to live regardless of the insane money!
If any English players and wags ever go play there decent chance they'd end up getting departed...
If any English players and wags ever go play there decent chance they'd end up getting departed...
He's basically signed for the Saudi PIF since they now own 75% of each of the top 4 clubs.
So is Benzema a baddie now?
"Now"?
Saudi changed a lot in the last few years. I was there 20 years ago, it wasn't fun at all. Now it's basically Dubai 2.0 in certain parts of the country, wags will be fine.
He always wanted to live there for 200 mil a year, sure.
Why do they even bother trying to say going there is for any other reason than the obscene amounts of money being thrown at them? It’s laughable, like anyone’s buying it.
Obviously money is the main reason he went to Saudi Arabia, but I don't think it's entirely unreasonable to believe that religion had at least some part to play in his choice of a final payday.
And if he'd said that, fair enough.
Look, I'd sign for a North Korean side for the wages he's on and I'd also say whatever bollocks I thought would make my paymasters happy, but nobody wants to pay me 200 million a year so I'll settle for chuckling at this tit lying through his teeth.
I mean, Benzema is a practicing Muslim so it's not exactly out of character for him to say that religion played a part in his move. He's obviously not gonna say that he only moved there for money, even if that's true, and I wouldn't hold that against him personally.
Now let's say Cristiano Ronaldo said he converted to Islam before moving there and that was the reason for choosing to move to SA, now that would be completely obvious BS.
So not for lifetimes then.
He'd still be in Spain if he wasn't offered so much money. This statement about his religion is the most obvious PR move and I can't believe anyone is buying it.
It's because of money, Saudia Arabia and Qatar aren't the only muslim countries.
He could have gone to Raja Casablanca, Morocco is a muslim country as well, and they would love to have him, but he is never going there cause they can't pay him 200 million a year.
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