Saudi Arabia uses sports 'soft power' as lever of influence

Saudi Arabia's hosting of the Dakar Rally this month is just the latest international sporting event to take place in the kingdom as part of a multi-billion dollar push to boost its battered global image. In recent months the ultra-conservative kingdom — under fire over human rights abuses — has accelerated investment in sports, mirroring a longstanding strategy adopted by regional powers, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. Saudi Arabia is seeking to use glitzy sporting extravaganzas as an instrument of soft power in its push for regional supremacy as well as to project a moderate image of a country long seen as an exporter of jihadist ideology. In 2019 the kingdom hosted a heavyweight...