Female Footballers Urge Fifa to Sever Ties with Saudi Aramco

In April, Fifa inked a four-year agreement with Aramco, making them a global partner for major tournaments like the 2026 World Cup and the Women's World Cup in the subsequent year.

Saudi Arabia has invested heavily in sports like football, Formula One and golf in the last few years while critics, including women’s rights groups and members of the LGBTQ community, accuse the kingdom of using its Public Investment Fund (PIF) to “sportswash” its human rights record.

The country denies accusations of human rights abuses and says it protects its national security through its laws.

Manchester City and Netherlands striker Vivianne Miedema, Canada captain Jessie Fleming and former United States skipper Becky Sauerbrunn were among the players to sign the letter.

“We urge FIFA to reconsider this partnership and replace Saudi Aramco with alternative sponsors whose values align with gender equality, human rights and the safe future of our planet,” the players said in the letter.

They also proposed setting up a review committee with player representation to evaluate the ethical implications of future sponsorship deals.

“The safety of those women, the rights of women, LGBTQ+ rights and the health of the planet need to take a much bigger priority over Fifa making more money,” Sauerbrunn, a two-time former World Cup winner and Olympic gold medallist, said via campaign group Athletes Of The World.

Fifa pointed to the impact of sponsorship revenues on investment in the women’s game.

“Fifa values its partnership with Aramco and its many others commercial and rights partners,” a spokesperson for Fifa said.

“Fifa is an inclusive organisation with many commercial partners also supporting other organisations in football and other sports.

“Sponsorship revenues generated by Fifa are reinvested back into the game at all levels and investment in women’s football continues to increase, including for the historic Fifa 2023 Women’s World Cup and its groundbreaking new distribution model.”

But Miedema, who was shortlisted for the Ballon d’Or Feminin in 2019, 2021, and 2022, warned of further action should Aramco remain a sponsor of the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

She told the BBC: “You’ve seen over the past couple of years that women’s teams are not scared to stand up for what they believe in. You’ve seen boycotts from numerous teams, obviously recently, like with the America team, with the Canadian team, everyone is very open and willing to share their opinions.

“That shows you that going forward, there will be a lot of attention and there will definitely be things happening around the World Cup.”

A representative for Aramco said they would provide a response to the letter at the earliest opportunity.

The news comes after top men’s players have criticised the ever-increasing fixture schedule, with some talking of strike action.

European Leagues, players’ union Fifpro Europe and La Liga jointly filed a complaint to European Union antitrust regulators last week against Fifa’s international match calendar.