Climate change scoring 'goals'

The annual meeting of the UNFCCC Congress of Parties (CoP) 2023 will be hosted by UAE. CoP has always gained huge attention from every nook because of its legacy in making heavy global commitments. However, the presidency of  Industry Minister Sultan Ahmed al-Jaber  CEO state oil company was considered as an irony and burgeoned the tensions among 'conservationists'.

Oil money has always remained the main source of revenue for the Gulf countries. The global climate commitments to phase out non-renewable energy usage have created chaos in the region for a while. This tension has made the region think about diversification of revenue. The commercialization of the market for non-crude business was the forerunner accompanied by the opening for tourism potential. Places like Dubai and Abu Dabhi has already turned into tourism hotspot attracting high-profile people. The recent investment in football has to be seen in this context.

The passion of the West Asian countries for the game hit a long ago. The conventional traps of simplicity to play and easiness to learn have seduced the Arabs also. Countries like Iran, and Saudi Arabia are regular contestants in big-stage games. Still remember Lionel Messi's last minute-winner against Iran in the 2014 World Cup and loss of the same in 2022 against Saudi Arabia. Leaving national football aside, the history of investment in European football has also touched a decade. In 2011 French club Paris Saint-German started getting the financial backing of Qatar. English clubs Manchester City and Newcastle FC are some other big catches. The Arab money has helped them to bring revolutionary changes including their tactics and infrastructure which eventually helped them to perform the best. Pep Guardiola's (Manchester City manager) revelation on the pricy nature of good-quality players and their demand is enough to understand the boost provided by Arab money.

The above efforts aided the West Asians to extend their reach to Europe but a pair of very recent incidents are making the winds blow to the land surrounding the Mediterranean, the Red Sea, the Persian Gulf, and the Arabian Sea. The Qatar World Cup and legend Cristiano Ronaldo's move to Al-Nassar are the two. Keeping aside the controversy that sprouted at the beginning of the tournament, Qatar displayed one of the finest gaming atmospheres ever witnessed. 'The final' fueled the fire!.

Transfer move of Ronaldo was quite unexpected because of the mentality the player poses and his earlier interview statements. Whatsoever the move has made tangible changes in club football. Following him a chunk of players have moved to various Saudi clubs, Neymar Jnr being the last in the list. What is actually making this land cynosure for their eyes?

Without any doubt, pay tops the list. Saudi leagues don't have any stringent budget regulations as we see in Europe. This allows clubs to offer eye-popping prices. The hospitality and luxurious lifestyle catered before themselves and their families are another key aspect since many are over with their prime. Moreover, the changing game rules, the static attitude of UEFA, and racism push them to look for new grounds.

Despite the spike in enthusiasm and trends of changing directions with transfers, the fact is that the lion's share of them are 30 plus, who have played and done with European football. A trend which can be equalized with erstwhile the Marque player system in the  ISL. The market value or viewership has not proven a paradigm shift, yet there are possibilities. The league has to improve its quality in order to match with Europe. For the time being Europe continues to be the 'Mecca' of football where legends are born!

Open for criticism 
Nithal S Rahman
nithalrahman@gmail.com