Over the last few years, Saudi Arabia has launched itself decisively onto the world tourism front, revealing a record-breaking year of visitors, enormous investment promises, and forward-thinking alliances with some of the world’s mightiest travel and hospitality conglomerates.
The new revelation of Saudi Tourism Authority’s (STA) historic achievements in the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2025 — 14 fresh global partnerships, an astonishing $800 billion tourist budget, and high-profile globe-trotting event hosting — makes one fact clear: Saudi Arabia is carefully building a global image rebranding. And the 2034 FIFA World Cup will be its final trophy in the race.
With FIFA 2034 on the horizon, it’s essential to appreciate that Saudi Arabia’s tourism boom and hosting extravaganza are not simply commercial undertakings. They are calculated attempts at sportswashing — deploying sport and tourism as a tool for cleaning the kingdom’s extremely marred human rights record. If we have faith in freedom, dignity, and true international solidarity, then we should boycott the Saudi 2034 World Cup.
Tourism as a Tool for Image Laundering
The Saudi presence at ATM 2025 was simply overwhelming. With 142 partners under the Saudi Land pavilion, STA signed 14 landmark Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with industry titans like Accor, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Radisson Hotel Group, Booking.com, Hopper, and so on. From luxury hotels and international booking sites to regional transportation giants such as Careem, Saudi Arabia is digging itself into every aspect of the world’s tourism supply chain.
On the surface, this sounds like economic modernization. But scratch a little deeper, and it becomes evident that these deals are just as much about soft power and international image management as they are about profit.
By hosting international events such as the Esports World Cup, marketing cultural experiences with international celebrities such as Cristiano Ronaldo, and wooing foreign investors with glossy holiday packages to unspoiled beaches and mountain retreats, Saudi Arabia is attempting to deflect attention from its history of systematic repression, censorship, and human rights abuses.
The $800 Billion Soft Power Machine
Saudi Arabia’s pledge of $800 billion to tourism is not only an investment number — it’s a declaration of intent. That enormous amount outstrips most tourism plans on the planet and indicates that the kingdom is bent on dictating its own story on the world stage.
This approach mirrors the same trend seen with Saudi Arabia’s growing ownership and sponsorship in international sports, like its takeover of Newcastle United Football Club, significant investments in Formula 1, and the staging of international boxing, golf, and esports events.
FIFA 2034, if not challenged, will be the jewel in the crown of this soft power strategy, conferring the Saudi regime unprecedented legitimacy and exposure in the guise of “global unity” via sport.
Global Corporations as Facilitators of Repression
Perhaps the most troubling aspect of the Saudi Tourism Authority’s recent success is the complicit involvement of large global corporations in this campaign of whitewashing.
- By entering into profitable deals with Saudi Arabian hotel chains, travel websites, or entertainment firms, these companies are not merely conducting business. They are actively contributing to the normalization of a regime in which:
- LGBTQ individuals are persecuted (homosexuality is illegal and punishable by death);
- Dissidents and journalists (such as the late Jamal Khashoggi) are silenced or murdered;
- Migrant workers are exploited under the kafala system.
- Freedom of expression, assembly, and political protest do not exist.
- Women’s rights activists are jailed
When Booking.com markets tailored Saudi holidays, or Accor constructs luxury resorts in Riyadh, they give legitimacy to a state that violently suppresses fundamental freedoms. Taking part in a FIFA World Cup held by such a regime perpetuates that complicity among players, supporters, and worldwide viewers as well.
The Cultural Facade: Constructing a Deceptive Narrative
Saudi Land’s pavilion at ATM 2025 was a picture of color and cultural depth, from traditional crafts such as Bisht weaving to live folklore performances and experiential tourism activations. Visitors were able to admire picturesque coastal hideaways and breezy mountain getaways or peruse Ronaldo’s suggested travel schedule.
But this highly produced cultural charm offensive conceals an uncomfortable reality: behind the scenes, Saudi Arabia is still a deeply authoritarian country.
While tourists are welcome to take part in pottery classes and scenic deserts, Saudi women’s rights activists such as Loujain al-Hathloul, who battled for women’s right to drive, have been imprisoned and tortured. While international tourists drink coffee in Al Baha, human rights activists rot in jail under broad anti-terror laws for tweets and peaceful demonstrations.
A FIFA World Cup conducted in these circumstances would only reinforce this cultural facade, enabling Saudi Arabia to say to the world, “We are modern, open, and welcoming,” while muzzling those who reveal the truth.
The Moral Imperative of a Boycott
By taking part in Saudi Arabia’s 2034 FIFA World Cup, players, fans, businesses, and broadcasters risk becoming inadvertent accomplices to whitewashing oppression. This is not new. The same issues prompted the broad condemnation of the 2022 Qatar World Cup, at which migrant workers died and human rights concerns clouded the tournament. But Saudi Arabia’s scope, ambition, and $800 billion machinery threaten an even bigger challenge to the moral world of sport and tourism. Boycotting FIFA 2034 sends an unequivocal, ethical message:
- Human rights are more important than profit.
- Freedom of expression, gender rights, and LGBTQ+ rights cannot be overlooked for tourism dollars.
- International sports and tourism must not be instruments for autocratic governments to clean their reputations.
Don’t Be Fooled — Demand Accountability
Saudi Arabia’s dazzling tourism promotions, multi-billion-dollar investments, and glamorous international events are meant to divert us. They want us to forget Jamal Khashoggi. Forget arrested activists. Forget the silenced voices and invisible suffering. But we cannot — and must not — be party to this deception.
Boycotting FIFA 2034 is not anti-Saudi people — it is a protest against a regime that hides injustice behind sports and tourism. As long as Saudi Arabia does not provide basic rights and freedoms to all its residents and citizens, we cannot play along with this farce. It’s time to opt for dignity over dollars, justice over jamborees, and human rights over hospitality.