For a player used to gracing Rio de Janeiro’s world-famous Maracana Stadium or the Parc des Princes in Paris, the modest Balewadi Sports Complex in Pune might be a bit of a culture shock for Neymar, who is in line to play his first ever match on Indian soil.
The Brazil superstar and his new Al Hilal teammates were drawn in Group D of the 2023-24 Asian Champions League on Thursday, setting up trips to Iran to face Nassaji Mazandaran, Uzbekistan to take on Navbahor, and India, where they will be hosted by Mumbai City, the reigning Indian Super League champions.
Mumbai, who are part of the City Football Group, usually play their games at the Andheri Sports Complex, but that didn’t meet the AFC’s criteria, so they’ve switched to the nearby Balewadi, which holds just 11,800. The biggest star to have visited the arena previously is probably Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan, who was once involved in a consortium that bought local side FC Pune City.
That will all change, however, when Neymar and his illustrious teammates – Hilal also boast Kalidou Koulibaly, Ruben Neves, Aleksandar Mitrovic, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Malcom – come to town later this year.
Mumbai's English coach, Des Buckingham, said his side were relishing the challenge of taking on some of the biggest names in world football.
“As coaches and players, we always want to test ourselves against the best," he said. "It's a wonderful opportunity for us to continue what we did last time around and to showcase what Indian football can do on that stage. We’re looking forward to giving a good account of ourselves against the likes of Al Hilal, Nassaji and Navbahor – some of the best clubs in Asia – and represent not just Mumbai but Indian football as a whole in the best way possible.”
Indeed, it’s a quirk of the Saudi football explosion that it will not only be Neymar and his colleagues exploring new frontiers, as the influx of elite talent across the league's leading clubs get to the grips with the demands of Asia’s top continental competition.
In Group E, for example, Cristiano Ronaldo and his star-studded Al Nassr side will make the trip to Dushanbe, Tajikistan, to take on the 2022 Tajiki champions Istikol, who play their games at the 20,000-capacity Pamir Stadium.
Ronaldo, who counts Sadio Mane and Marcelo Brozovic among his teammates, is also set for an away day in Tehran to visit Iranian Pro League outfit Persepolis, and another in Qatar where Al Duhail are waiting for them.
Meanwhile, in Group C, current Ballon d’Or holder Karim Benzema is slated for a potential trip to Baghdad to face Air Force Club – although like all these group stage games, exact dates and venues are still to be confirmed.
Also in Group C are Isfahan-based Iranian side Sepahan, who regularly attract huge crowds to the Naghsh-e-Jahan Stadium. The section is completed by AGMK of Uzbekistan, who are based in the heavily-industrialised Olmaliq district of capital Tashkent.
While precise venues and the fixture calendar are still being formulated, there's no doubt that the 2023-24 ACL group stage is sure to throw up some extraordinary trips for the Saudi Pro League’s star players and exciting opportunities for football fans across Asia to see them play.
The group stage will run from September 18 to December 13, with the knockout stage to kick off on February 12. The full draw can be seen below:
Group A: Pakhtakor (UZB), Al-Fayha FC (KSA), Ahal FC (TKM), Al-Ain FC (UAE)
Group B: Al Sadd SC (QAT), FC Nasaf (UZB), Al-Faisaly (JOR), Sharjah FC (UAE)
Group C: Al-Ittihad (KSA), Sepahan SC (IRN), Air Force Club (IRQ), AGMK FC (UZB)
Group D: Al-Hilal SFC (KSA), Nassaji Mazandaran FC (IRN), Mumbai City FC (IND), Navbahor (UZB)
Group E: Persepolis FC (IRN), Al-Duhail SC (QAT), FC Istiklol (TJK), Al Nassr (KSA)
Group F: Jeonbuk Hyundai Motors FC (KOR), Bangkok United (THA), Lion City Sailors (SGP), Kitchee SC (HKG)
Group G: Yokohama F. Marinos (JPN), Shandong Taishan FC (CHN), Kaya FC-Iloilo (PHI), Incheon United FC (KOR)
Group H: Buriram United (THA), Ventforet Kofu (JPN), Melbourne City FC (AUS), Zhejiang FC (CHN)
Group I: Ulsan Hyundai FC (KOR), Kawasaki Frontale (JPN), Johor Darul Ta'zim (MAS), BG Pathum United (THA)
Group J: Wuhan Three Towns FC (CHN), Pohang Steelers (KOR),Hanoi FC (VIE), Urawa Red Diamonds (JPN)
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
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Brief scores:
Manchester City 3
Aguero 1', 44', 61'
Arsenal 1
Koscielny 11'
Man of the match: Sergio Aguero (Manchester City)
More coverage from the Future Forum
The years Ramadan fell in May
What is a robo-adviser?
Robo-advisers use an online sign-up process to gauge an investor’s risk tolerance by feeding information such as their age, income, saving goals and investment history into an algorithm, which then assigns them an investment portfolio, ranging from more conservative to higher risk ones.
These portfolios are made up of exchange traded funds (ETFs) with exposure to indices such as US and global equities, fixed-income products like bonds, though exposure to real estate, commodity ETFs or gold is also possible.
Investing in ETFs allows robo-advisers to offer fees far lower than traditional investments, such as actively managed mutual funds bought through a bank or broker. Investors can buy ETFs directly via a brokerage, but with robo-advisers they benefit from investment portfolios matched to their risk tolerance as well as being user friendly.
Many robo-advisers charge what are called wrap fees, meaning there are no additional fees such as subscription or withdrawal fees, success fees or fees for rebalancing.
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Empty Words
By Mario Levrero
(Coffee House Press)
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The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4cyl turbo
Power: 261hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 405Nm at 1,750-3,500rpm
Transmission: 9-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 6.9L/100km
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MATCH INFO
Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid
When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid
Dark Souls: Remastered
Developer: From Software (remaster by QLOC)
Publisher: Namco Bandai
Price: Dh199
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.”
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