Rafael Nadal is sure to anger not just many neutrals and pundits, but his own supporters after he was announced as the brand ambassador of the tennis federation of Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. The Spaniard is expected to promote tennis in the country with multiple initiatives, presumably more so once he calls it a day from the game. He posted about the same on his X account –
Growth and progress that’s important to see and the STF is working on that.
In a recent visit I saw the interest in both aspects and I want to be part of that role of growing the sport of tennis around the world.
The kids are looking to the future and I saw they are passionate… pic.twitter.com/vF3VaJXazH— Rafa Nadal (@RafaelNadal) January 15, 2024
The 22-time Grand Slam has claimed that it is an opportunity to grow the sport in a country which does not have rich history of the game. If Rafael Nadal is to be favored, the one valid point would be the fact that he played a rare exhibition match in the Central Asian country of Kazakhstan a few years ago against Novak Djokovic, which many children turned up to watch. Nadal also met them on his trip to motivate them.
Secondly, it is also a possibility that Rafael Nadal might be looking to expand the ‘Rafa Nadal Academy’ in Saudi Arabia soon, to align his goal of developing young talents as well as capitalise on a growing tennis and sports market overall, comprising of people of different genders, income groups and ages. Besides this, tourists also look to come to the Middle East and sign up for ‘tennis hospitality packages’, making it a lucrative opportunity for Nadal in the future.
Thirdly, Rafael Nadal has not done something out of the blue for a modern-day sportsperson. Lionel Messi was paid $25 million last year by Saudi Arabia as their tourism brand ambassador. Cristiano Ronaldo is being paid above $200 million annually to play in the Saudi Pro League and has expressed his happiness being there. These are two other major examples.
However, Rafael Nadal is already at the centre of a huge controversy as many in the tennis world continue to be against Saudi Arabia’s increasing involvement in professional tennis across the globe. Saudi Arabia’s government, which owns entities such as the Public Investment Fund (PIF) and the Saudi Tennis Federation, is a dictatorial one and accused of violating human rights, women’s rights, LGBTQ and freedom of speech amongst others.
Rafael Nadal differs from likes of Roger Federer and John McEnroe
In October 2018, veteran Saudi Arabian journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, who was an independent voice calling out the government for their practices, was ambushed and killed in Turkey, presumably by government agents of the Middle Eastern country. Before that happened, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic had agreed to play in a multi-million exhibition match in Jeddah, which was scheduled for December 2018. However, perhaps seeing the backlash surrounding the murder, Nadal backed out pretty much at the last minute, while his team came out with a statement that he was injured.
That claim now is questionable. While many active tennis players are in support of playing more in Saudi Arabia such as Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz and Nick Kyrgios, Nadal’s move is surely going to very debatable in the tennis world. Once again, the term ‘sportswashing’ has erupted on social media platforms and with this association, it would now be used more to refer to Rafael Nadal. In some quarters, Nadal has been accused of being a ‘PR agent’ of that regime.
Roger Federer was too offered a handsome $2 million paycheck for 1-2 exhibition matches in Saudi Arabia a few years ago. But Federer rejected the deal and this move might now be lauded even more. Similarly, American tennis legend John McEnroe too had once turned down an opportunity to play in South Africa back in the 1980s, for a sum of money which no other player before him had earned in the history of the game.
The idea seemingly was for McEnroe to promote peace in the country by appearing for a tennis match and meeting his fans. However, when asked about his decision, John McEnroe said that he was clear about never supporting the erstwhile apartheid government that thrived on racism and also denied their own colored citizens basic human rights.
Perhaps, the situation in Saudi Arabia could be better now for a reputed sportsperson like Rafael Nadal to have accepted such a deal, weeks after Novak Djokovic got to play his long-awaited exhibition match against Carlos Alcaraz. Saudi Arabia, besides venturing into other sports, is also looking to host marquee events like the FIFA World Cup in the next decade. Nadal seems to be one part of their strategy. But with the people in power still remaining the same, question marks are likely to remain for a long time on his move and subsequently, his legacy.
