FIFA has banned Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr from registering new players, which is a major setback for the Saudi Pro League.
When Al Nassr, who placed second in the premier division last season, signed Ronaldo to a staggering £173m deal in December 2022, it marked the beginning of Saudi Arabia’s domination of football.
Many well-known footballers, including Karim Benzema, Ruben Neves, N’Golo Kante, Kalidou Koulibaly, and Edouard Mendy, have recently relocated to the Middle East. Steven Gerrard has also taken over as manager of Al Ettifaq.
Al Nassr have brought in Marcelo Brozovic from Champions League finalists Inter Milan but their transfer business might be done for the foreseeable future.
FIFA have now prohibited the club from registering new signings, whether it be domestic or international transfers.
The ruling imposed is for three transfer windows and is in relation to the club failing to pay owed add-ons to Leicester City as part of a £14m deal for Nigerian striker Ahmed Musa.
It’s said Nassr owe the Foxes £390,000 but have yet to pay up and have now been punished as a result.
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Musa scored 14 times in 62 games for Al Nassr, helping them to win the league in the 2018/19 season.
The initial FIFA ruling was brought in back in 2021 and then supported by CAS (Court of Arbitration for Sport), who sided with Leicester on the matter.
Nassr were told to pay the remaining fee as agreed upon on the terms of the contract, or else they would receive a transfer ban.
They have not complied and have since been disciplined, though the suspension is set to be lifted as the club have said they will promptly pay up.
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