saudi arabia

In the final episode of this four-part series, Rog and Tommy trace the massive flow of Saudi money into Hollywood, Silicon Valley and Wall Street, and how the biggest venture capitalists and A-list celebrities seem to no longer care about Saudi Arabia’s human rights record. They also look back at the history of the US-Saudi relationship, and how President Biden went from pleading to make Saudi Arabia a “pariah” to traveling there to fist bump Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah. And finally, they dive into the possible motivations behind Saudi Arabia’s investments, from the need to diversify the Saudi economy, to whitewashing the murder of Jamal Khashoggi and changing the subject from other human rights violations. Despite all the depressing news, Rog and Tommy try to find glimmers of hope where grassroots activism and football can lead the way in creating a more just world. All of this and more, on the final episode of World Corrupt, Season 2.

In episode three of this four part series, Rog and Tommy explore the rise of Saudi Arabia’s domestic football league and why superstars like Cristiano Ronaldo and Neymar are flocking there. iNews’s chief football writer Daniel Storey joins the show to tell the tale of one of those players, former Liverpool captain and one-time “moral center” of English football Jordan Henderson, whose move to the Saudi pro-league led to one of the starkest falls from grace in recent sporting history. Plus, Saudi Arabia has all but secured hosting rights for the 2034 Men’s World Cup....but did football’s global governing body FIFA rig the bidding process years in advance? And with Saudi Arabia also eyeing hosting duties for the 2035 Women's World Cup, former US Women’s National Team legend Megan Rapinoe gives her thoughts on what it would mean to play football's crown jewel tournament in a country where women are assigned a male guardian and homosexuality is illegal. All of this and more on the latest episode of World Corrupt. 

And, we're back! Join Roger Bennet and Tommy Vietor for another season of World Corrupt, with a focus on why Saudi Arabia is investing billions in football. Episode 1 coming March 16. 
 

Welcome to The Sports Agents, a brand-new twice-weekly addition to The News Agents podcast family, hosted by Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman...

This week Gabby & Mark explored the big scandal in Formula One surrounding Red Bull team boss Christian Horner, found out a little more about Manchester City and England star Phil Foden and discussed Saudi Arabia's increasing influence in heavyweight boxing.

Here's a little flavour of what you can expect.

New episodes every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon.

On today's podcast:
1) Stocks, US Futures Decline Before Inflation Gauge
2) Nike Sinks on Forecast
3) U.S. May Lift Ban on Sales of Offensive Weapons to Saudi Arabia 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Who are Yemen's Houthis, and what threat do they pose to us here in the West? Intelligence analyst Ryan McBeth brings us in from Out of the Loop.

Welcome to what we're calling our "Out of the Loop" episodes, where we dig a little deeper into fascinating current events that may only register as a blip on the media's news cycle and have conversations with the people who find themselves immersed in them.

On This Episode of Out of the Loop, We Discuss:

• Though the group from which they originate has been around for thousands of years, why are the Houthis in Yemen suddenly making headlines and drawing attention from the West?
• How Iran benefits from (allegedly) arming the Houthis to fight a proxy war against Saudi Arabia's influence in the region.
• Why Yemen is a crucial link in the global supply chain — and how it enriches whoever is able to control it.
• Why the well-funded Saudi military has a difficult time keeping the Houthis in check.
• Possible global consequences of the recent Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea.
• And much more!
• Connect with Jordan on Twitter, on Instagram, and on YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on an Out of the Loop episode, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!

Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/934

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Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!

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Your morning briefing. The news you need in just 15 minutes.

On today's podcast:
(1) The Labour party is making an increasingly aggressive bid to claim the Conservatives' mantel as the party of business.

(2) The Bank of England's Governor says UK interest rates are near the peak.

(3) US regional banks may need to borrow $63 billion to comply with new capital requirements from regulators.

(4) Apple has suffered its worst stock decline in a month following news that Chinese government agencies have barred staff from using iPhones at work.

(5) Saudi Arabia wants to turn the kingdom into a natural resources hub by mining for metals in the desert. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Your morning briefing. The news you need in just 15 minutes.
On today's podcast:

1) Oil Tests November High After OPEC+ Leaders Extend Supply Cuts

2) China Bans iPhone Use at Central Government Agencies, WSJ Says

3) FTC’s Amazon Antitrust Suit Likely to Be Filed in September 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Tommy and Ben talk about negative headlines surrounding Ukraine’s counteroffensive, Russian warlord Yevgeny Prigozhin’s re-emergence in Africa, a Human Rights Watch Report about Saudi Arabia’s horrendous abuse of Ethiopian migrants, a fun twist in the Mar-a-Lago documents case, and rare good news for climate change from voters rejecting oil drilling in Ecuador and a drop in deforestation in Brazil. They also discuss Canada’s unprecedented wildfires, Ecuador’s election runoff a week after the assassination of a presidential candidate, the rise of a far-right political party in Germany, GOP candidate Vivek Ramaswamy’s remarks on America’s commitment to Israel, and the crash of a Russian lunar probe. Then Tommy is joined by Kurt Campbell, President Biden’s Coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs, to break down the historic summit at Camp David the US hosted between Japan and South Korea’s leaders.

For a closed-captioned version of this episode, click here. For a transcript of this episode, please email transcripts@crooked.com and include the name of the podcast.

When Saudi cinemas reopened in 2018, for the first time in 35 years, they screened the Marvel movie Black Panther. Many saw parallels between the kingdom and the fictional world of Wakanda, as crown prince Mohammed bin Salman unveiled ambitious plans for modernisation and an economy that would diversify away from oil, investing in futuristic projects such as Neom, a half-trillion-dollar city.

Saudi Arabia has since sought to position itself as a global investment powerhouse, focusing on tourism, sports sponsorships, financial services, green hydrogen production, and the electric vehicle industry. Long dependant on oil, can the kingdom transform itself into a major global force in a post-carbon future?

In this week’s long read and magazine cover story, New Statesman contributing writer Quinn Slobodian explores the consequences of Saudi dominance on international politics, the climate crisis and our technological future.

Written by Quinn Slobodian and read by Chris Stone.

Listen to more:

The Spanish election reveals the future of Europe, by Jeremy Cliffe: https://pod.fo/e/18c885

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UK hedge fund firm Odey Asset Management is being dismantled in the wake of sexual misconduct allegations against its founder and Saudi Arabia has spent almost $8bn on gaming companies in the past 18 months as part of a turbocharged investment spree. Plus, FT markets editor Katie Martin talks about this week’s asynchronous central bank moves. 

Mentioned in this podcast:

ECB increases interest rates to highest level since 2001

Chinese economic data fuels gloom over recovery

Saudi Arabia spends billions in drive to dominate global games industry

Odey Asset Management to be broken up

Unhedged podcast: https://link.chtbl.com/Unhedged

The FT News Briefing is produced by Fiona Symon, Sonja Hutson and Marc Filippino. The show’s editor is Jess Smith. Additional help by Katie McMurran, Peter Barber, Michael Lello, David da Silva and Gavin Kallmann. Topher Forhecz is the FT’s executive producer. The FT’s global head of audio is Cheryl Brumley. The show’s theme song is by Metaphor Music. 

Read a transcript of this episode on FT.com

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week, golf’s premier circuit, the PGA Tour, announced it was partnering with its rival circuit LIV Golf, an upstart league backed by Saudi Arabia, giving the country a powerful new seat at the table of international sports.

Alan Blinder, who covers golf for The New York Times, explains what was behind the deal and what it means for the business of sports.

Guest: Alan Blinder, a reporter who covers golf and health for The New York Times.

Background reading: 

• The deal to merge LIV Golf with the PGA Tour is a big win for oil-rich Saudi Arabia, headlining a banner week that also includes a visit from the American secretary of state.
• The U.S. Senate opened an inquiry into the PGA Tour’s deal with LIV Golf.

For more information on today’s episode, visit nytimes.com/thedaily. Transcripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.