Cristiano Ronaldo was officially unveiled as an Al Nassr player on Tuesday after finalising his move to the Saudi Arabia club on a two-and-a-half year contract.
Ronaldo, one of the finest footballers in history, was introduced on Tuesday night at the Saudi Arabian league leaders home at Mrsool Park in Riyadh where he was given a hero’s welcome on the pitch in front of 25,000 supporters.
Who are Al Nassr?
The Riyadh club are one of Saudi Arabia's most well known and decorated clubs who regularly compete for honours both domestically and in Asia. Al Nassr have won nine Saudi Premier League titles, six King's Cups, three Crown Prince's Cups, three Federation Cups and two Saudi Super Cups. In 1995 they reached their only Asian Champions League final, losing to South Korea's Ilhwa Chunma.
Coached by Frenchman Rudi Garcia, Al Nassr currently top the Saudi league table ahead of Al Shabab on 26 points.
Why has Ronaldo signed for Al Nassr?
Ronaldo signed on a free transfer following the termination of his contract at Manchester United on November 22. The 37-year-old Portuguese striker departed Old Trafford after a stinging television interview in which he criticised the club's owners and manager Erik ten Hag.
Widespread reports claim the former Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus forward will earn north of $200 million per year – although Nassr have, predictably, decided not to confirm nor vehemently deny the speculation.
What did Ronaldo say about the move?
"I'm grateful to Al Nassr, for giving me this opportunity to develop football for the younger generation, for the women as well. For me, it's a challenge, but I also feel very happy and proud," Ronaldo said.
"I can say now, I had many opportunities in Europe, Brazil, Australia and the United States. Even in Portugal, many clubs tried to sign me, but I gave my word to this club, to develop not only football but also the other parts of this country."
What has been the reaction to Ronaldo's move?
Ronaldo has been criticised for joining Al Nassr, with his detractors claiming it is no way to bring down the curtain on one of the most successful careers in the game's history.
With 118 goals, he sits as the all-time leading goalscorer in men’s international football, while he has registered more than 800 goals in his career overall.
The Portugal captain is a five-time winner of the Uefa Champions League, and has guided his country to success in both the 2016 European Championship and the 2018/19 Uefa Nations League.
“Football is different [nowadays]; the evolution of football is different,” Ronaldo said. “It’s not the end of my career to come to Saudi Arabia. This is why I want to change, and to be honest, I really don’t care what people say.
“I took my decisions and I have responsibility to change that. But, for me, I’m really, really happy to be here.”
Who will Ronaldo play with at Al Nassr?
Ronaldo will line up alongside several players who have enjoyed fleeting moments at the Qatar World Cup alongside him.
Defender Sultan Al Ghannam's introduction as a late substitute helped Saudi Arabia pull off the shock of the tournament as Herve Renard's side beat Argentina in their Group C opener.
Ronaldo could partner Vincent Aboubakar in attack. The Cameroon striker scored one of the goals of the tournament with an inch-perfect lob over Serbia goalkeeper Vanja Milinković-Savić in their first group match and also scored the winner against Brazil before being sent off for his celebrations.
Other familiar names include former Arsenal and Colombia goalkeeper David Ospina, former Brazil midfielder Luiz Gustavo and attacking Argentine midfielder Pity Martinez.
When will he make his debut for Al Nassr?
The former Real Madrid and Juventus striker could be in line to make his debut for his new side on Thursday when the Saudi league leaders take on Al Ta'ee at home.
Al Nassr coach Rudi Garcia said the signing of Ronaldo was a huge step for the Saudi Arabian league.
"In my life, I've seen that great players like Cristiano are the simplest to manage, because there's nothing I can teach him," Garcia told reporters.
"Like he said, we are here to win, nothing else. I want him to enjoy playing with Al Nassr and winning with Al Nassr, just that."
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
Trump v Khan
2016: Feud begins after Khan criticised Trump’s proposed Muslim travel ban to US
2017: Trump criticises Khan’s ‘no reason to be alarmed’ response to London Bridge terror attacks
2019: Trump calls Khan a “stone cold loser” before first state visit
2019: Trump tweets about “Khan’s Londonistan”, calling him “a national disgrace”
2022: Khan’s office attributes rise in Islamophobic abuse against the major to hostility stoked during Trump’s presidency
July 2025 During a golfing trip to Scotland, Trump calls Khan “a nasty person”
Sept 2025 Trump blames Khan for London’s “stabbings and the dirt and the filth”.
Dec 2025 Trump suggests migrants got Khan elected, calls him a “horrible, vicious, disgusting mayor”
Retail gloom
Online grocer Ocado revealed retail sales fell 5.7 per cen in its first quarter as customers switched back to pre-pandemic shopping patterns.
It was a tough comparison from a year earlier, when the UK was in lockdown, but on a two-year basis its retail division, a joint venture with Marks&Spencer, rose 31.7 per cent over the quarter.
The group added that a 15 per cent drop in customer basket size offset an 11.6. per cent rise in the number of customer transactions.
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