Cristiano Ronaldo's arrival in Saudi Arabia has increased the number of fans coming to Al Nassr, but they are not the most watched team in the Saudi Pro League.
Without a doubt, Ronaldo sparked interest in football in the Middle East when he arrived at Al Nassr last January on a free transfer.
I'm not sure many people thought much about football in Saudi Arabia before signing, but certainly everyone has since then.
There will certainly be more interest from next season with the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund seemingly determined to bring to the league as much talent as possible.
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Ronaldo foresaw that he would reunite with former Real Madrid team-mate Karim Benzema when Al Nassr faced champions Al Ittihad in their next campaign. The Ballon d'Or owner has decided that he will end his time at the Bernabeu soon to earn a huge amount of money elsewhere.
The next time the two teams meet will surely make a big splash for Saudi football and Ronaldo has done it all by himself.
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During the 22/21 campaign, Al Nassr drew an average of 8,121 fans to their 25,000-seat stadium and a year later that average was 17,638 and certainly more if the player ever Five-time Ballon d'Or winner signed an earlier contract.
However, the 38-year-old's impressive numbers do not put his side at the top of the standings and they are still second to the team that beat them to the title, according to Transfermarkt.
16. Al-Batin - Ability:
6,000. Average attendees:
3.467
15. Al Fayha - Capacity:
7,000.Average:
3,588
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14. Abha Club - Capacity:
20,000. Mean:
4.596
13. Damac - Ability:
5,000.Average:
4.611
12. Al Shabab - Ability:
15,000.Average:
5,400
11. Al Wehda - Ability:
38.0 Average:
5.725
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10. Ettifaq - Capacity:
26,000.Average:
6,000 won
9. Khaleej - Ability:
20,000. Mean:
6.073
8. Al Raed - Ability:
25,000.Average:
6.429
7. Al Taawoun - Ability:
25,000 Average:
6,843
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6. Al Tai - Ability:
12,250. Mean:
7,330
5. Al Hilal - Capacity:
56,453.Average:
9,854
4. Al Fateh - Capacity:
20,000.Average:
10,804
3. Al Adalah - Ability:
26,000.Average:
12,912
2. Al Nasr - Ability:
25,000.Average:
17,638
1. Al Ittihad - Capacity:
62,241. Mean:
40,453
Benzema will play in the biggest stadium in Saudi Arabia next season. Image:
alamy
Ronaldo has at least helped have the highest rate on any pitch in Saudi Arabia, something some Premier League teams are even struggling with.
King Abdullah Sports City overwhelms Al Awwal Park, but Al Hilal's King Fahd International Stadium is also huge and doesn't fill as many seats as Ronaldo's team.
Essentially all the averages are up from a year ago, so it will be interesting to see where we are in 52 weeks when Benzema and anyone else go to bed.
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