FIFA announced on July 13 that Al Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo’s club in Saudi Arabia, cannot sign new players until they pay off a debt to Leicester City.
Al Nassr were requested to pay Leicester €460,000 ($513,000) in addition to yearly intrigue of 5% in an October 2021 decision by a FIFA-selected judge at its players’ status panel.
Leicester filed the grievance in April 2021 as a result of unpaid additional clauses due from the €18m ($20m) offer of Nigeria forward Ahmed Musa in 2018.
Al Nassr, which was taken under majority ownership last month by the $700 billion sovereign wealth Public Investment Fund — can still sign new players though not register them to play.
“The club Al Nassr is currently prevented from registering new players due to outstanding debts,” FIFA said Thursday. “The relevant bans will be lifted immediately upon the settlement of the debts being confirmed by the creditors concerned.”
Al Nassr’s signing of Ronaldo as a free agent in January 2023 ignited an extraordinary binge of expenditure by clubs in the Saudi Pro League, with four now majority owned by PIF. The fund is led by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman.
Al Nassr signed Croatia midfielder Marcelo Brozovic this month from Bury Milan in a transfer supposedly valued at €18m ($20m).
Al Nassr is currently at a preseason training camp in Portugal. On August 22, the club has a qualifying playoff in the Asian Champions League. Al Nassr will host Shabab Al Ahli of United Arab Emirates or Jordan’s Al Wehdat.
Ahmed Musa left Riyadh-based Al Nassr in 2020 and played last season with Sivasspor in Turkey.
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