News analysis: Thank you Vlad - $1,000,000,000 of oil windfall to trigger a new wave of investment in the Gulf

By David Owen

August 24 – Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City, Newcastle United: Middle East-based interests have already recouped their share of Western trophy sporting assets. The region has also hosted dozens of high-profile international sporting events, none brighter than the FIFA World Cup, whose kick-off in tiny but mega-rich Qatar is now less than a year away. three months.

Still, believe it or not, this may just be the beginning. The next decade could well see the Gulf emerge as a totally dominant player in the money-hungry international sports sector. And the character who more than anyone burst into this new door of opportunity? Advance Russian strongman Vladimir Putin.

How is this possible? We need look no further than the energy crisis gripping Europe, football and the traditional epicenter of the international sports sector. Triggered by Putin, this should make the West considerably poorer and the hydrocarbon-producing Gulf states richer as a result.

How much richer? For that, I am indebted to the head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) whose comments led to a headline titled "Middle Eastern States Predicting $1.3 Trillion Oil Windfall, IMF Says" in the Financial Times of last week.

Jihad Azour, the IMF's Middle East and North Africa director, told the FT's Middle East editor that oil and gas exporters in the region would see "petroleum revenues cumulative additional $1.3 trillion through 2026" compared to pre-war Ukraine expectations.

With the deals, this is an absolutely incredible amount of money to funnel into an already prosperous region in the space of just four years.

Think about it: As Western European governments ponder the pain of soaring energy prices they can afford to inflict on already strained consumers after a decade and a half of tasteless growth, and as China appears to rein in its old footballing ambitions as it continues to battle COVID, a growing share of the new world capital will rise above the ground and find its way into the pockets of men who were already the sports world's hottest spenders.

Let's just say I'm not surprised that FIFA boss Gianni Infantino - a man usually quite quick to sense which way the financial winds are blowing - has found time in his job. Busy time to watch heavyweight Usyk-Joshua boxing championship fight in Jeddah with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.

Unsurprisingly, the IMF expects Saudi Arabia to be one of the fastest growing economies in the world this year, with GDP growth of 7.6% - "the fastest growing fastest in almost a decade" - against a very enviable inflation of 2.8%.

So expect another potentially massive new wave of investment in the Middle East to flood Big Ticket sport, including of course top-flight football.

If British businessman Sir Jim Ratcliffe is serious about buying Manchester United, who despite recent setbacks on the pitch remain a prime sporting asset, I suspect he'll have to put on his skates if he wants to strike an agreement at what he would consider an acceptable price.

It's been over 17 years since I found myself sitting in Perugia listening in amazement to one of the children of former Libyan strongman Muammar Gaddafi telling me how, a few months earlier, they were "on the brink of to buy Manchester United shares.

As serious as Gaddafi Jr. was, it always seemed a downright surreal prospect. Less than two decades later, Arab ambitions in the international sporting sphere seem almost limitless. Thank you Vladimir.

David Owen worked for 20 years for the Financial Times in the United States, Canada, France and the United Kingdom. He ended his career with FT as a sportswriter after the 2006 World Cup and is now freelance, covering the Beijing 2008 Olympics, the 2010 World Cup and London 2012, among others. Owen's Twitter feed is accessible at www.twitter.com/dodo938. Contact him at moc.l1661485370labto1661485370ofdlr1661485370owedi1661485370sni@n1661485370ewo.d1661485370ivad1661485370