Bloomberg owns the conversation on Saudi in the global business press on this fine Ramadan morning with a trio of stories.

Up first: The Public Investment Fund is closing in on the USD 1 tn milestone for assets under management, it writes. (We had the story on Tuesday, citing data from the SWF Institute.) The UAE’s ADIA and the Kuwait Investment Authority are also closing in on USD 1 tn in AUM, it notes.

Football: The PIF has no plans to boost its three-year budget for the Saudi Pro League, with Carlo Nohra, the chief operating officer of the Saudi Pro League, telling the business information service that the Kingdom’s football clubs will be shifting gears in the next transfer window — halting last summer’s spending spree.

Fast fact #1: “Teams in the Kingdom spent USD 875.4 mn bringing in foreign players last summer, according to FIFA. Only English clubs, with a tab of USD 1.98 bn, outspent them during the period,” Bloomberg writes.

Fast fact #2: “The global appeal of foreign stars has helped Saudi Arabia to secure broadcasting deals for its games in more than 130 territories.”

AND- Vice Minister of Tourism Haifa Al Saud sat down with Bloomberg for a one-on-one. Her key messages:

  • The tourism industry has attracted private-sactor investment worth north of USD 13 bn;
  • We’ll add c. 150k-200k new hotel rooms over the next two years;
  • The industry should generate revenues of USD 85 bn this year, or nearly 29% more than in 2023
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