How Saudi Arabia is aiming to be home to the world’s biggest sporting events

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia’s coastal city of Jeddah was buzzing with excitement yet again on Saturday ahead of one of the biggest boxing rematches in sporting history, between Ukrainian Oleksandr Usyk and British fighter Anthony Joshua. 

Such scenes of anticipation are increasingly familiar in Saudi Arabia, as more and more international sporting events are hosted by the Kingdom — a product of the country’s wide-ranging social and economic transformation plan, Vision 2030.

Last September, Usyk shocked the boxing world when he outclassed Joshua in the first bout, claiming his fourth heavyweight title. Owing to the war in Ukraine, their planned rematch could not take place in the champion’s home country. 

Instead the bout, titled “Rage on the Red Sea,” came to Jeddah.

One of the goals of Vision 2030, launched in 2016, was to establish the Kingdom as a regional hub for world-class professional sporting events that would generate jobs for Saudi citizens and enhance overall quality of life. 

Today, sports are taking center stage in the Kingdom’s diversification drive to move the economy away from hydrocarbons and to embrace a whole host of flourishing cultural, entrepreneurial and high-tech industries.

In just a few short years, Saudi Arabia has moved to the forefront, hosting some of the biggest sporting events in the world, providing an additional boost for tourism, hospitality, leisure, and employment, while also strengthening national identity.

Tourism is one area Saudi Arabia is especially eager to promote with the launch of its Saudi e-visa in 2018. The Kingdom expects to have hosted 100 million tourists by 2030, drawn by a mixture of new luxury resorts and a packed entertainment calendar.

Hosting major sporting