Saudi Crown Prince Considering €10 billion Offer to Buy Football Giants

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman has been linked with making an offer worth a cool €10bn to buy a European football giant.

Saudi Arabia has increasingly become an important part of global sports in recent years, with big boxing fights often taking place in the Middle Eastern nation and Formula 1 having a race in the country since 2021.

In football, the Saudi Pro League has increasingly seen more players from Europe opt to play there in light of the large wages on offer.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the most high profile star playing in the Saudi Pro League, moving there following his second departure from Manchester United in 2022, and has been followed there by several stars from top European leagues.

The Saudi Crown Prince is the heir apparent to his nation's throne and is the country's Prime Minister after he succeeded his father Salman in 2022.

Saudi King Salman's net worth is estimated to stand at some $18bn as a result of profits made from the oil industry, so the family is not short of financial resources.

Now, the Saudi Crown Price has been linked with buying a stake in one of Europe's footballing giants.

According to reporter Francois Gallardo of Spanish publication El Chiringuito, the Saudi Crown Prince is considering making an offer worth €10bn to buy one of the El Clasico pair.

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman. (Image: Getty)

An offer is reportedly being considered for Barcelona, who are ranked as the third most valuable football club on the planet with an estimated worth of $5.6bn.

It also boasts some of the highest annual revenues in the world, but the club does also carry some of the greatest debts along with that.

The La Liga side does have debts of more than €2.5bn, which is something that the Saudi Crown Prince would need to take into account if he were to make a move to buy the Camp Nou outfit.

Another complication is that Barcelona is that the club is owned by socios or members, who would not theoretically allow it to be taken over by a foreign arm completely or run its daily operations, such as Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) which already owns Premier League side Newcastle United.

Barcelona currently sit top of the La Liga table and extended their lead at the summit to seven points with a 2-0 victory over Osasuna, with Raphinha grabbing both goals in the second half.