MLS, Saudi showing they are worth the switch
'He said, 'you have to play for a European club at the highest level,'' Beckham revealed in his 2023 documentary, Beckham.
At the time, a big-money move to a club playing in a less competitive league effectively marked the end of a player's international career. It was an option pursued more by players well past their prime, who were looking for a relatively easier stage to play on in the last stage of their career.
But that is not the case today.
A move to the US, or more prominently, the cash-rich Saudi Pro League is far from being the dead end it was once considered.
Consider the two latest high profile players to make the switch from major Premier League clubs to non-European leagues. South Korean Heung-min Son has moved to Major League Soccer's (MLS) Los Angeles FC and former Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez of Uruguay will now ply his trade for Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League. Both players though remain important for their respective national teams and are bound to feature at next year's FIFA World Cup.
And they are far from being the only big-name players in non-European leagues who remain essential figures in international football. Messrs Lionel Messi, who has been playing at Inter Miami in the MLS since 2023, and 40-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, who moved to Al-Nassar in the Saudi Pro League the same year, are vital players for Argentina and Portugal respectively.
'Being a coach isn't about picking or not picking Cristiano Ronaldo, it's about using the best players to have the best team and win titles. It's important to make decisions based on facts, and Cristiano has scored 20 goals (for Portugal) in (the last) 25 games. There are no records like this.' Portugal manager Roberto Martinez was quoted as saying by ESPN.
In June, Ronaldo led Portugal to a second UEFA Nations League title, with the five-time Ballon d'Or winner scoring in the final against Spain. In that same Portuguese team though, was 28-year-old Al-Hilal (in the Saudi Pro League) midfielder Ruben Neves, and Ronaldo's new Al-Nassr teammate 25-year-old Joao Felix.
Countries where football leagues were once considered as final chapters now have players in their prime competing in them. In fact, an array of star players have now started to make their way to Saudi.
Champions League and Premier League winner with Liverpool Georginio Wijnaldum is there with Al-Ettifaq. France's left-back at the 2022 World Cup, 27-year-old Theo Hernandez plays for Al-Hilal, two-time Premier League winner with Manchester United Chris Smalling plays for Al-Fayha, Al-Ittihad boasts 2018 World Cup winners Karim Benzema and N'Golo Kante... the list goes on.
And in the US, Inter Miami alone has Messi, Luis Suarez, and Spain's World Cup winners Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba.
What the influx of big-name players - not all on their last legs - is doing is making these leagues more competitive.
'I believe that at this moment that we are in the top five (leagues) already,' Ronaldo said in a video posted on X by Al-Nassr. 'I still believe that we will continue to improve, and we have time and we have shown in the last two years that the league is going up all the time.'
The Saudi Pro League, in particular, has been the most prominent destination for top-name players because of the high salaries on offer, ever since Ronaldo made the move to Riyadh in 2023, for a reported yearly salary of $250 million.
A spate of big-name transfers to the Gulf followed, and Al-Hilal reportedly offered Paris Saint-Germain a record $332 million for Kylian Mbappe. The Frenchman opted not to make the switch. But Saudi Arabia has become a footballing destination that can no longer be ignored.
In Beckham's documentary, Capello talked about his conversation with the former England star. 'I told him that, in my opinion, he needed to return back to reality.'
That was the reality back then. Today, despite players competing in non-European leagues, their careers are still very much alive.
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