Teams in Saudi Arabia have a limit on how many foreign players they can register

Clubs in the Saudi Pro League are splashing out on major signings from European clubs as they look to make a huge splash in world football.

Cristiano Ronaldo kicked things off by signing for Al Nassr and now a slew of household names have joined the five-time Ballon d'Or winner in Saudi Arabia.

Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante have both signed for champions Al Ittihad, managed by Nuno Espirito Santo, while Kalidou Koulibaly and Ruben Neves have penned lucrative deals with Al Hilal, the league's most decorated team.

Edouard Mendy has become the third Chelsea player to move to Saudi after sealing a switch to Al Ahli.

Roberto Firmino and Marcelo Brozovic look set to follow suit, with a whole host of other stars heavily linked.

Image: Getty

Saudi sides are causing utter chaos in the market, almost replicating what happened in the Chinese Super League a few years ago when the likes of Carlos Tevez, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Oscar and many more were lured to the Far East for serious cash.

However, there is a cap on how many foreign players each team can have in their squad. In 2016/17 the limit was four players and even a rule whereby no goalkeepers from abroad could be signed.

Image: Alamy

But over the years the cap has been gradually increased, with clubs allowed no more than eight foreigners in their ranks.

When Ronaldo signed, Al Nassr had to offload striker Vincent Aboubakar in order to free up a spot for the Portuguese superstar.

Sky Sports have said the Saudi Pro League want to have 100 of the best foreign players in the world plying their trade within the next five years as they look to compete with other leading leagues.

There's also a huge change starting with next season, as 18 teams will be in the top flight as opposed to the previous 16.

Two teams will be relegated to the second division, instead of three like before.

Image: Getty

“The large international leagues that are highly competitive have between 18 teams and 20 teams,” SAFF President Yasser Al-Misehal said.

"“We saw that it was time to take an additional step here in Saudi Arabia and raise the number of clubs to 18 in the professional league, starting from the 2023-24 season.”

Topics: Saudi Arabia, Saudi Pro League, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, NGolo Kante, Ruben Neves, Kalidou Koulibaly

Josh Lawless

Josh is a sports journalist who specialises in football and wrestling. He has been published by Curzon Ashton FC, Late Tackle, Manchester City FC, The Mirror, Read Man City and Manchester Evening News. He provides coverage of professional wrestling and has interviewed some of the biggest names in the field - including the first UK interview with The Hardy Boyz after their return to WWE. He has never sported a pair of Lonsdale Slip-ons, contrary to reports.

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