Will Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar stay or go? Saudi Pro League CEO discusses possibility of Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal stars signing new contracts

While Ronaldo has played regularly since joining Al-Nassr in 2023 and Neymar has been out injured for nearly a year for Al-Hilal, both are massive draws for the Saudi Pro League. With the big-name duo out of contract next summer, the league's CEO, Omar Mugharbel, was asked about the efforts to retain the two - but he suggested it was not really in his hands.

He said, via FourFourTwo: “It’s no secret that Ronaldo has created a massive impact on the league, both domestically and internationally. It creates a lot of value and continues to do so. However all discussions around the duration, the contract and re-signing is a matter between Ronaldo and the club to agree on whether that’s something that’s going to happen or not."

Asked about Neymar, he replied: “Like Ronaldo, it’s a discussion between the club and the player on how they view their future. Having Neymar in the league, even though he hasn’t been playing, he has a massive following globally and he’s quite active from a community perspective, so it creates a lot of value for the league. But what the future holds, that’s something the player and the club have to discuss. We play a facilitating job, but the club has to be at the forefront of the decision-making. There are definitely discussions that happen, but it starts by the club and the player saying: ‘We want this to happen’. That’s 90 per cent of the whole process.”

If the Saudi Pro League wants to continue to grow in prestige and popularity, it may have to retain the services of the likes of Neymar and Ronaldo especially. That, and the astronomical wages clubs can offer, has attracted many players to the league but that may take a hit if the pair head to pastures new at the end of the season.

Incidentally, Neymar's Al-Hilal side are next in league action away to Al-Khaleej next Saturday whereas Ronaldo's Al-Nassr host Al-Qadisiyah a day before.