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Saudi Arabia looks to be perhaps capitalizing on Real Madrid’s acquisition of French superstar Kylian Mbappe by trying to coax world-class Brazilian winger Vinicius Jr. to join its burgeoning professional soccer league.
According to reports, the Saudi Pro League has set its sights on the 24-year-old Brazilian star, who is reportedly “considering” the offer. Real Madrid, wisely, reportedly does not Vini Jr. to go.
Given the blatant sports-washing project that is the Saudi Pro League, though, it should be noted that reports from ESPN indicate that Real Madrid is in talks with Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) rather than any specific club. The PIF owns 75% of the capital of the country’s four most popular teams: Al Ahli, Al Ittihad, Al Hilal, and Al Nassr.
“Vinícius Júnior is the latest target for the Saudi Pro League, a source has told ESPN, and the Real Madrid player is considering a proposal to move to the Gulf country.”
“There have been talks between Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Real Madrid about the move, the source said, although the La Liga giants do not want the star to leave. There has not yet been an official, formal offer for Vinícius.”
If Vini Jr. were to make the jump to the SPL, it would undoubtedly change the face of the sport as he’s currently one of the top five players in the sport.
While the Saudi Pro League has been recruiting aging superstars like Ronaldo and Karem Benzema (the latter of which was signed directly from Real Madrid), and solid pros like Ruben Neves and Sergej Milinković-Savić, acquiring a talent like Vini Jr., who is not yet even in the prime of his career, would represent a seismic shift in the sport.
In seasons past, Madrid undoubtedly considered Vini Jr. — perhaps the favorite to win the Ballon d’Or this year — an untouchable asset given his world-class talent and age profile.
The arrival of Mbappe, however, may not only complicate Vini Jr’s position on the field — the pair both prefer to play on the left wing — but also may have an impact on his ego as another alpha male attacker joins the team buoyed by a bevy of global fanfare.
Vini Jr. and Real Madrid are coming off a 2023/24 season that saw the iconic club win both the La Liga title and the Champions League.