Saudi Arabia’s plan to privatize its football clubs "could be delayed beyond" the targeted '20, the head of the country’s football federation said, according to Tom Arnold of REUTERS. The delay "would be the latest setback to economic reforms." Sport is one of "the pillars of the government’s Vision 2030 goal to raise living standards and diversify the economy beyond oil exports," while the privatization of football clubs "has been earmarked as an early candidate" in a drive to privatize state-linked assets. The authorities previously indicated football clubs "would be part of an initial tranche" of privatizations to be finalized by '20, but Saudi Football Federation President Qusai al-Fawaz "said that the date was uncertain." He said, "Privatization is the long-term plan. I don’t have an exact time for this. I don’t know whether it will be 2020 or 2022 until the plan is ready." The investment climate in Saudi Arabia "has recently been hit by the murder of Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi" (REUTERS, 1/3).
MAKING HISTORY: The AP's Andrew Dampf reported facing "increasing criticism by government members over the decision to play the Italian Super Cup in Saudi Arabia," Serie A's president is hailing the match as a "historic" opportunity for Saudi women to attend an int'l football game. After tickets for the Jan. 16 game between Juventus and AC Milan went on sale with specified sectors for "singles" and "families" to separate men and women, Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said that it was "a shame." Serie A President Gaetano Micciche said that the game will "go down in history as the first official international competition that Saudi women can attend" (AP, 1/3).
