Cairo: Saudi Arabia’s entertainment authorities have disclosed what they termed as “big surprises” including a project with Portuguese football icon Cristiano Ronaldo.
“A project with the legend Cristiano Ronaldo in Riyadh will be announced in the coming months,” head of the Saudi General Entertainment Authority (GEA) Turki Alasheikh said in an X post without giving details.
The Saudi official posted a photo grouping him with several top world athletes including Ronaldo.
In January 2023, Ronaldo joined the Riyadh-based Al Nassr club under a two-and-half-year hefty deal that made global headlines.
Since setting foot in Saudi Arabia, Ronaldo has wowed fans with his football wizardry defying age.
In November, a museum showcasing the illustrious career of the 38-year-old legend opened in Riyadh as part of the flagship entertainment and tourist festival, the Riyadh Season organised by GEA.
However, the winner of five Ballon d’Or awards has recently come under fire due to what was described as an unsportsmanlike act on the pitch.
The Saudi Football Football’s discipline committee last week suspended Ronaldo for one game and fined him SR30,000 for provoking fans of a rival team.
In his squad’s Saudi league match against Al Shabab, he allegedly made an obscene gesture after the fans had reportedly taunted him by shouting the name of Argentine icon Lionel Messi.
Saudi Arabia has hosted prominent entertainment and sports events in recent years as the kingdom seeks to diversify its oil-reliant economy. An epic boxing fight titled “Knockout Chaos” between Anthony Joshua and Francis Ngannou is due in Riyadh Friday.
In 2016, the kingdom established GEA, a state agency that has since sponsored a slew of stellar concerts, stage shows and festivals.
