Saudi Arabia is increasingly presenting a glamorous face to the world, as it was recently seen at Paris Fashion Week. Saudi actress and host Aseel Omran was among Hollywood legends Eva Longoria, Jane Fonda, and Kendall Jenner in a glamorous spectacle outside the historic Hotel de Ville.
Celebrities and models walked along the outdoor catwalk in dazzling dresses, while Brazilian singer Anitta sang halfway through the show. The program, broadcast live on TikTok and Instagram, underscored Saudi Arabia’s increasing reliance on entertainment and social media to project its global image.
On the surface, this flash of sparkle might be taken as a positive sign. Saudi Arabia is behaving like it’s modern, cool, and cosmopolitan. But behind the cameras and sequins, there is a brutal truth: the kingdom still represses its people, curbs freedoms, and breaches human rights. The fashion show is not an isolated incident—it is part of an overall move to whitewash systemic abuses and divert attention from continued injustices, including repression of women, suppression of free speech, and exploitation of migrant workers.
The Reality Behind the Red Carpet
Aseel Omran and other Saudi leaders’ Paris Fashion Week visit is a PR stunt masterclass. Presenting an image of glamour and inclusiveness, Saudi Arabia hopes that the world will look beyond its abuses. While the world attends to red carpets and streamed catwalks, many hard realities lie behind the scenes:
Suppression of Free Speech in Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia continues to imprison journalists, writers, and activists. In 2024, 23 new writers were jailed, with authorities using anti-cybercrime laws to target online dissent. The regime employs sophisticated surveillance, including Pegasus spyware, to monitor critics.
Restrictions on Women’s Rights
As the global fashion world celebrates Saudi women through mainstage global events, back home, discrimination against women continues. Only 19.9% of parliamentarians are women, and the legal system is still at 50 out of 100 in the World Bank’s Women, Business, and the Law 2024 report.
Exploitation of Migrant Workers
Celebrities and models have world attention, but migrant workers, 42% of the population of Saudi Arabia, suffer from systematic abuse and forced labor. They work in poor conditions for megaprojects and enjoy limited legal safeguards.
Arbitrary Executions and Capital Punishment
As stars work in the limelight, Saudi regimes persist with conducting 122 executions in 2024, most of them foreigners. Trials are usually grossly unjust, earning the regime widespread condemnation by human rights bodies across the globe.
Suppression of Political Activism
Along with attacking journalists and writers, the Saudi regime actively represses political activism. Arrests, intimidation, and torture greet peaceful protests, engendering an atmosphere of fear that dissuades citizens from voicing criticism. This pervasive repression belies the image of a liberal, modern society presented at global gatherings.
Restraints on Freedom of Religion
Saudi Arabia has rigid religious policies that restrict freedom of worship for non-Muslims and discriminate against religious minorities. While glamour and cultural openness are observed by international audiences, residents live with the daily constraint of religious expression, illustrating the sharp divergence between image and reality.
Glitter as a Tool for International Legitimacy
Saudi Arabia’s deployment of fashion, celebrity sponsorships, and social media is calculated. By aligning itself with Hollywood celebrities and international beauty, the kingdom produces a veneer of modernity and advancement. The Paris Fashion Week event wasn’t about dresses—it was a real-time, worldwide transmission of Saudi soft power to millions on Instagram and TikTok.
Granting Saudi Arabia, the 2034 FIFA World Cup would further expand this platform. As the fashion show employed glamour to frame the narrative, the World Cup would give Saudi Arabia an even bigger platform to present an image of modernity, with the world being distracted from the country’s abuses of human rights and freedoms.
From Paris Runway to Global Stadium: The Whitewashing Continues
Each sequined dress, each celebrity selfie, each social media update is a part of a story intended to make Saudi Arabia seem acceptable to the world. The World Cup is an even more potent instrument than a fashion show. Granting Saudi Arabia, the 2034 tournament would send a perilous message: that international events can legitimize regimes with questionable human rights track records, so long as they become skilled at public relations.
It is important to understand that the Paris Fashion Week glamour cannot wipe out the truth of oppression at home. The disparity between a shining catwalk in Paris and random arrests or gender restrictions back home in Riyadh is stark, irrefutable, and unacceptable.
International Image vs. Domestic Reality
Saudi Arabia’s highly managed international image conceals the brutal realities that its citizens experience. While the world witnesses celebrities, dazzling gowns, and live performances, the kingdom persists in limiting basic freedoms. Free speech is restricted for ordinary Saudis, gender segregation is practiced, and close surveillance is maintained, while migrant workers have to suffer abuses and hazardous working conditions. The Paris Fashion Week show is a quintessential example of image trumping reality, aimed at diverting global attention away from endemic abuses. This extreme contrast reveals that glamour will not wash away oppression, and world events like the World Cup might even further legitimize Saudi Arabia’s deceptive narrative.
Sportswashing Through Mega-Events
Saudi Arabia’s application for hosting the 2034 FIFA World Cup is only one piece of a larger sportswashing puzzle—hosting major events to enhance global reputation while suppressing domestic transgressions. Through the use of entertainment, celebrity guest performances, and showpiece projects, the kingdom tries to change its image and acquire legitimacy on the global stage.
As Paris Fashion Week presented a high-end image, the World Cup would offer a huge platform to deflect attention away from institutionalized human rights violations. Fans and governing bodies have to acknowledge this strategy and resist supporting regimes that use sport and culture to hide oppression and sell a false image of progress.
Take a Stand: Boycott Saudi 2034
As fans, global citizens, and advocates for human rights, it is our duty to demand accountability. The 2034 FIFA World Cup should be awarded to nations that uphold fundamental freedoms, gender equality, and justice—not to countries that use entertainment and celebrity culture to mask systemic abuses.
Boycotting Saudi Arabia’s 2034 World Cup is not a political stance—it’s a matter of morality. Do not be deceived by glitter, red carpet, or social media calls. Look beyond the glitz and see the continued oppression that lies underneath.