Saudi supporters of a local team on Ronaldo's affiliation: "The whole world will take note"
Cristiano Ronaldo may have spent the whole of Portugal's round-of-16 match against Switzerland on the bench, but thousands of fans at Lusail Stadium on Tuesday cheered him on with deafening volume.
Many of them weren't even supporters of Portugal. In leagues, exhibition games, and now at the World Cup, Ronaldo is a huge crowd favorite all around the world. While the 37-year-old is most likely participating in his final World Cup, Middle Eastern fans could soon see him play again locally.
Ronaldo has been linked to Al Nassr, a Saudi Pro League (SPL) team, after being released by Manchester United last month.
Saudi football fans say they can't wait to have the Portuguese icon in their midst, even though confirmation of a move is still pending and won't likely be confirmed until after the World Cup.
Who wouldn't want to watch Ronaldo play in person? Even though I don't support Al Nassr, Ibrahim Al Hassun, a Saudi football supporter, told Al Jazeera in Doha that he should visit Saudi Arabia.
With 195 appearances for Portugal's national team, Ronaldo holds the record for most goals scored in international competition (118). However, a question mark looms over his future with Portugal's national team.
He was left off the starting lineup for Portugal's most recent game despite just having one goal to his name thus far in the tournament. In his stead,
Having nine championships under its belt, and has reportedly extended a three-year, $225 million contract to Ronaldo.
The possibility of having one of football's biggest stars perform in their nation excites Saudi fans.
Al Hassun claimed that Ronaldo's rumored move will have the biggest effect on Saudi football in terms of the attention he will attract. "Saudi football will be watched by everyone, including the media, supporters worldwide, and social media. It will be incredible.
If Saudi supporters are looking for attention, their World Cup team's performance has given them enough of it.
Statistics provided by World Cup host broadcasters beIN show that 99.3 million people watched Saudi Arabia's memorable victory over Argentina in their tournament-opening match, more than 80 million of whom were from outside the country.
The national squad has advanced significantly since the last World Cup, but Muhammad, a Saudi supporter from Riyadh, claimed that the world only started paying attention after they defeated Lionel Messi's Argentina. Muhammad claims that Ronaldo's presence will assist local players develop and handle the stress of important games. The player remarked, "We need to make sure our players take full advantage of Ronaldo's arrival since he will make a lot of money from playing in our country."
International footballers have been playing in the nation, despite the fact that local players make up the majority of the SPL rosters. Anderson Talisca, a Brazilian forward, joined Al Nassr last year, and Ever Banega, an Argentine midfielder, has been with Al Shabab, a Riyadh-based team, since 2020.
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