RIAD – The stadium was half empty, even though the Italian champions and the winners of the last Europa League were on the pitch. The children selling scarves and flags on the street, at the foot of futuristic skyscrapers, right in front of the stadium where Cristiano Ronaldo earns 200 million a season. And cultural incidents like the one last year, when the Arab public booed a minute's silence for the death of Gigi Riva, pushing the Serie A League not to repeat the experiment, in memory of Aldo Agroppi. The Italian Super Cup in Riyadh raises several questions. The first: do Saudis really like Football?
Agroppi's death, the minute's silence in the Arab stadium which booed Riva and Beckenbauer was cancelled
by our correspondent Franco Vanni
02 January 2025
Half-empty stands for Inter-Atalanta
CR7 is considered a demigod here. His image is everywhere, the Saudis are as proud of him as if he were born here, or even more so, because he chose Saudi Arabia. “If you see his face, he seems more Arab than me,” said a proud steward at the Al-Nassr stadium, where Inter and Atalanta competed. But Christian aside, there is little doubt that football is of little interest. Last night's empty stands reinforce this. If in a city of 8 million inhabitants there are not 25,000 willing to see Inter-Atalanta, how many will be in the stands to see, for example, Czech Republic-Paraguay at the 2034 World Cup? The Saudis have nine years to think about it. And to really try to spread the love for football in their country.
Inter-Atalanta 2-0: Dumfries decides the first Super Cup semi-final
by our correspondent Franco Vanni
02 January 2025
Tickets at affordable prices, many even given as gifts
Tickets for last night's game were on sale at non-prohibitive prices. There were coupons for 23 euros. And in any case, many places had been booked by sponsors, mostly institutional, who then gave them as gifts to employees and friends, as the (very distracted) occupants of the sky boxes told before the match. But even if you give them tickets, it is difficult to convince Saudis to go to the stadium. The Serie A League recorded almost 17,000 tickets distributed, but a glance is enough to realize how many have given up going to the stadium, despite having the title. We'll see how it goes for Milan-Juventus. It seems that, at least for the match between the two most successful Italian clubs, there will be a sold-out.
Children with POS in hand selling flags
Children selling flags on the street, often holding the POS for credit cards and adults giving them orders, is a scene that is repeated from edition to edition. Amnesty International has long denounced the use of child labor in the kingdom – even for much more demanding jobs than the sale of scarves and flags – as well as violations of human rights. And we wonder how it is possible that the organization of sporting events allows such a spectacle. Investing in sport, as part of the Vision 2030 project, is the way in which Saudi Arabia has decided to open up to the world. But by opening up, what does he want to show about himself?
The minute of contemplation denied
The last problematic aspect that has emerged is that of the so-called “cultural accidents”. The whistles at the minute of silence for Beckenbauer and Riva last year was the clearest proof of this, to the offense of everyone, Italians and Saudis. And here the Westerners have to ask themselves the problem. Is it legitimate to expect that in Saudi Arabia they accept bringing our traditions into their home? To what extent is it necessary to know the culture of a country when deciding to go and take their money? The Serie A League has a contract with the Saudis for the Italian Super Cup worth 23 million per season, of which 8 go to the winning team. The tournament will be played in Arabia twice in the next 4 years. An opportunity to get to know each other better, beyond the money.
