Uncontested World Cup bid a giant win in Saudi’s rise from ‘pariah’ to ‘trusted’ sporting nation

Standing on the verge of hosting the World Cup is an undeniable win for oil power Saudi Arabia as it pushes to reshape its economy and shake off its questionable image, analysts say.

It wasn’t long ago that the desert monarchy was shunned by Western leaders after the 2018 murder of journalist Jamal Khashoggi by Saudi agents.

Now, while human rights controversies have not gone away, the kingdom is gaining a reputation for extravagant forays into sport, backed by its seemingly bottomless oil wealth.

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Saudi Arabia was named as the lone bidder for the 2034 World Cup on Tuesday, a major success that follows a string of high-profile sports acquisitions

Becoming the lone bidder for the 2034 World Cup, just 27 days after its campaign was announced, caps a stunning year where the unheralded Saudi Pro League has snapped up some of football’s top stars including Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar.

Saudi Arabia has also, from nowhere, elbowed its way to the top of professional golf after pressuring the venerable US PGA and European tours into a merger with its upstart LIV Golf.

These successes and others are not just vanity projects: they are calculated to bring attention, tourists and investments to a deeply conservative country that only opened to non-Muslim visitors in 2019.

It is nonetheless astonishing that less than a year after Qatar became the first Muslim country to host the World Cup, Gulf neighbour Saudi, under its 38-year-old de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman or ‘MBS’, is poised to emulate its sometime rival.

GIGA-PROJECTS

“Hosting the World Cup in 2034 will mark