The Scoop
Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal is close to completing a deal to buy a 75% stake in Riyadh-based soccer team Al Hilal for around $400 million from the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund, according to people familiar with the matter. The deal could be announced early next year, the people said.
Kingdom Holding Company, Prince Alwaleed’s investment vehicle, has been in talks with Saudi’s Public Investment Fund for several months. The remaining stake in the club is owned by a Saudi non-profit organization that’s mostly funded by Prince Alwaleed.
The deal could value the team — currently ranked second in the Saudi Pro League — at about 2 billion riyals ($530 million).
PIF and Kingdom Holding declined to comment.
Know More
Prince Alwaleed is a longtime supporter of the team and has provided financial support in the past. If finalized, the deal would mark the kingdom’s biggest club privatization so far, bolstering Saudi’s multibillion-dollar bet to turn its league to one of the top 10 globally through investments in high profile players like Cristiano Ronaldo.
PIF, which owns a 17% stake in Kingdom Holding, took control of four Saudi teams in 2023 to develop more commercial and investment opportunities with an eye toward privatization at a later stage. US sports executive Ben Harburg is the only foreign investor to buy a Saudi soccer team — and he recently told Semafor he’s considering buying a women’s club in the kingdom.
Notable
- Saudi Arabia is using soccer investments to reshape perceptions, assert soft power, and accelerate its Vision 2030 transformation beyond the pitch, Saudi analyst Mohammed Alsuwaylih writes for the Washington-based Gulf International Forum.