Javier Tebas, president of La Liga, affirmed that the sporting development underway in Saudi Arabia is steadily progressing towards positioning the Saudi Professional League among the world's top leagues. Tebas's remarks coincided with Jeddah hosting the Spanish Super Cup, an event that has become a cornerstone of the strategic relationship between Spanish and Saudi football.
Strategic partnership and its international dimensions
Speaking to the Saudi Press Agency, Tebas explained that holding the Super Cup in the Kingdom is not just a fleeting sporting event, but rather part of an expansion strategy through which La Liga aims to directly engage with its broad fan base in the Middle East. He noted that being in Jeddah gives fans a unique opportunity to interact with their favorite stars, thus enhancing brand awareness for Spanish clubs.
This hosting comes as an extension of a series of successes achieved by the Kingdom in hosting major sporting events in recent years, reflecting international confidence in Saudi infrastructure and organizational capabilities, which is in line with the objectives of the sports sector within the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which aims to make sports an important economic and tourism driver.
Technical cooperation and fair financial play
The La Liga president's remarks weren't limited to marketing; he also addressed the depth of technical cooperation with the Saudi Professional League. Tebas revealed joint working agreements aimed at transferring Spain's long-standing expertise in vital areas, most notably the implementation of Financial Fair Play standards. These standards are the cornerstone for ensuring the financial sustainability of clubs and developing fair competition. He also mentioned cooperation in the areas of audiovisual broadcasting and combating digital piracy, challenges facing the global football industry.
The future of the Saudi league and the impact of its stars
Regarding future prospects, Tebas painted an optimistic picture for the Roshan League, predicting it would rank among the top seven or eight leagues in the world within the next five years. He linked this development to continuing with the current approach, while emphasizing the need to improve certain aspects to ensure its success.
Tebas praised the significant impact of attracting global stars, describing the presence of Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo as a key factor in enhancing the league's global image. However, the Spanish official stressed that attracting stars must be accompanied by a sustained effort to increase attendance at all matches, not just the big ones, as well as to boost digital growth and build a sustainable fan base across social media platforms to ensure continued long-term growth.
