This article contains adult content that may be inappropriate for minors. Please confirm that you are 18 years or older to continue. This article contains images or details that some readers may find disturbing. Reader discretion is advised. Esteve Calzada, the executive director of Al Hilal, analyzes the growth of Saudi football and the stature of the club he leads, comparing it to the Spanish giant Real Madrid. The Catalan executive, who has had stints at Barcelona and Manchester City, believes in the potential and sustainability of the league. In an interview with the newspaper AS in Riyadh, Esteve Calzada, who has been the executive director of Al Hilal for two years, discussed the transformation of football in Saudi Arabia, describing the club as "the Real Madrid of Asia." The executive, who previously held management positions at Barcelona and Manchester City, admitted that the Al Hilal project was the only one that made him leave the English club after twelve years. The country is undergoing a transformation with football as a central element. "Al Hilal is a spectacular project, with the pressure to win that I am already used to," Calzada stated, emphasizing that the club's stature has exceeded expectations: "It is even more giant, more ambitious, more of a leader than I imagined. I already knew it was the most important club, but here you realize that you have the responsibility to lead a club with extremely high expectations, where it is expected that we always win." One of the main challenges, according to Calzada, is to make the club self-sufficient: "It is a challenge to ensure that the club becomes increasingly self-sufficient, generating its own resources. In fact, in the last two years, we have doubled our revenue. We have positioned ourselves among the 20 clubs with the highest revenue in Europe." When asked about the financial sustainability of Saudi football, Calzada expressed optimism, pointing to taxation as a crucial competitive factor. "Of course it can be sustainable. The absence of taxes makes us twice as competitive as Europe in terms of what we can offer," he explained. Although there is a government program for the recruitment of certain players, Al Hilal also generates its own revenue through sponsorships and sales, also counting on the support of Prince Al Waleed bin Talal. "In the end, it’s about winning, and anything less than winning is a failure." The passion of the fans was another aspect that surprised the executive: "The growth of the Saudi league is based on an organic need from the fans because they really love football. They are crazy about football. It’s not like when we went to China and saw that it didn’t take off due to the lack of a real fan base." Regarding the signing of Karim Benzema, Calzada highlighted his sporting impact. "We are very pleased with Benzema's arrival. It’s the first time we have a Ballon d'Or winner playing here. The impact is spectacular, but it is not a strategic signing from a commercial point of view, but rather purely sporting." Finally, the executive director of Al Hilal firmly believes in the future of the Saudi league, stating that its growth is a "hundred percent" certainty and that if the club competed in the UEFA Champions League, "it would definitely put up a fight." The Saudi football project "is here to stay," with the 2034 World Cup on the horizon and the ambition to continue attracting big stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Benzema to elevate the level of the league and generate new revenue sources for the clubs. The arrival of names like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar has created a pull effect, facilitating the arrival of other players who, when communicating with each other, share the good living experience in the country, the easy adaptation of families, and the top-notch infrastructure. A success story is that of Rúben Neves, who, despite having offers from major European clubs, recently renewed his contract, demonstrating "spectacular performance." The proof that the Saudi league is no longer seen as "lesser" is that players continue to be called up for their national teams, as happened with Bono (Morocco) and Koulibaly (Senegal) in the AFCON, or with Laporte, who continues to represent the Spanish national team. With the arrival of big names, it is no longer surprising to talk about others, like Vinícius Jr.: "There will be talk of all the great players, and since some have already come, it is not so surprising that others may come."
Al Hilal Esteve Calzada remains central to this story.
Al Hilal Esteve Calzada remains central to this story.
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