Over the past few years, Saudi Arabia has been wading its way into sports by using its Public Investment Fund to invest in league’s across the country, throwing money into soccer to lure stars like Christiano Ronaldo as well as golf, starting the controversial LIV Golf league. It’s led some to wonder if it’s only a matter of time before the Saudis attempt to move into American football, and one NFL executive has already made his thoughts very clear on the Saudis.
During an appearance on on Dan Le Batard’s show this week, Jacksonville Jaguars chief football strategy officer (and son of owner Shad Khan) Tony Khan spoke on the Saudi’s recent attempts to lure Aleksander Mitrovic from Fulham of the English Pro League – a soccer club also owned by Khan.
“It’s amazing. If you have enough money you can get away with anything, including murder,” Khan said on the show according to Chris Wheatley of National World Publishing. “They’ve certainly approached a lot of great players, but we’re committed to keeping our top stars.”
Fulham owner Tony Khan on Saudi Arabia's transfer recruitment:
"It's amazing. If you have enough money you can get away with anything, including murder. 🇸🇦
"They've certainly approached a lot of great players, but we're committed to keeping our top stars," he told… pic.twitter.com/VTnAJirPO2
— Chris Wheatley (@ChrisWheatley) July 19, 2023
This isn’t necessarily an empty hypothetical claim, either. In fact, it could be completely accurate.
After all, Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi was assassinated at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul back in 2018 by agents of the Saudi government, and the order allegedly came from Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
But when Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund currently features about $778 billion, there’s not a lot they can’t do or get away with.
