State Ownership, Concentrated Control and Competitive Integrity in Saudi Football: A Legal Analysis of Public Investment, Club Autonomy and De Facto Multi-Club Ownership in the Saudi Pro League.

This thesis analyses the legal and governance implications of state ownership and de facto multi-club ownership in the Saudi Pro League. It focuses on the Public Investment Fund’s majority ownership of several competing clubs and examines whether this concentration of control is compatible with fundamental principles of club autonomy, competitive integrity and independent decision-making in football. Through a comparative analysis of FIFA, AFC and UEFA rules, CAS jurisprudence, the UEFA multi-club ownership framework, Premier League governance standards, La Liga rules and the MLS single-entity model, the thesis argues that the Saudi model creates structural risks that existing regulatory frameworks are not fully equipped to address.

It concludes that sovereign ownership does not fall outside multi-club ownership principles and that stronger transparency, independent oversight, associated-party transaction controls and specific guidance on sovereign wealth fund ownership are required to protect the credibility and integrity of football competitions.