A new owner for Cristiano Ronaldo and Al-Nassr! Saudi Arabia plots huge shake-up as Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad no longer controlled by Public Investment Fund

Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr could soon welcome new owners, joining Al-Hilal and Al-Ittihad in shifting away from Public Investment Fund (PIF) control. Al-Ahli — who won the 2025 AFC Champions League — would be the only of the top four teams in the league left directly under the PIF.

The latest development in this matter was revealed by media personality Mohammed Al-Bukairy, who confirmed that the ownership of the three clubs — Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Nassr — will be transferred to three different companies. Al-Bukairy explained that 75 per cent of Al-Ittihad will be transferred to the company Jeddah Central Development Company (JCDC), while Al-Nassr will be acquired by Riyadh Air with the same percentage. According to Al-Bukairy, there will be no change at Al-Ahli, which will remain under the control of the Saudi Investment Fund, as is currently the case.

As for Al-Hilal, Al-Bukairy indicated that the 75% stake held by the investment fund will be transferred to Kingdom Holding Company. This means that Al-Hilal will leave the Investment Fund's control, as the latter owns only about 17% of Kingdom Holding Company.

As for the companies JCDC and Riyadh Air, which will acquire Al-Ittihad and Al-Nassr, respectively, the PIF owns a large percentage of their shares.

In June 2023, after years of consideration, it was officially announced that four clubs – Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli and Al-Nassr – would be privatised. Seventy-five per cent of the ownership of the four clubs was transferred to the Public Investment Fund, in a move that caused a major upheaval in the Saudi Pro League. Thanks to this privatisation, the four clubs were able to sign a number of big European stars, including Karim Benzema, N'Golo Kante, Neymar, Riyad Mahrez and Roberto Firmino.

Ronaldo has already extended his contract at Al-Nassr, signing a new deal that will run until 2027. The club are currently on the lookout for a new manager, with Jorge Jesus rumoured to be the top candidate for the role. Things are going well in Saudi football, as Al-Hilal silenced the critics of the league and showed the world they are not pushovers after eliminating Pep Guardiola's full-strength Manchester City side 4-3 in the Club World Cup round of 16 on Tuesday.