Saudi Arabia has, for years, used its oil money to sponsor sport teams, leagues, stadiums or even people, like Rafa Nadal, who became Saudi's "Tennis Ambassador" and received a golden racket in his final professional matches against Djokovic last weekend.
The country, which is also investing in movies, theme parks and video games, signed an agreement with FIFA through Aramco, a majority state-owned oil company, in order to sponsor the next Men's World Cup in 2026 and Women's World Cup in 2027.
This partnership has caused indignation within many professional female players, and over a hundred of them have signed a letter asking FIFA's president Gianni Infantino to end this partnership, due to Saudi Arabia's disregard of human rights.
Saudi Arabia has been allowed to "sportwash" its controversial image for years (using sponsorship and sport events to draw attention away from their human rights violations, including death penalties just for protesting against the crown), but these female players won't turn a blind eye to the country's continuous prosecution of LGBTQ+ people and oppression of women. They also protest specifically against Aramco, an oil company, blaming it for the climate crisis.
The letter can be read here. It has been signed by top players from many different countries, including Jessie Fleming (Canada), Becky Sauerbrunn (US), Vivianne Miedema (Netherlands), Sofie Junge Pedersen (Denmark) or Maitane Lopez Millan (Spain).
According to an statement sent to El País, FIFA defends the partnership and claims this money will allow for the development of women's football across the world, including in Saudi Arabia.