Christiano Ronaldo signed a 2.5-year contract with the Saudi team with Al Nassr, estimated to be worth more than 200 million euros. He made his debut in January. Hussein Malla/AP

Is Saudi Arabia using ‘sportswashing’ to simply hide its human rights abuses – or is there a bigger strategy at play?

Prince Mohammad bin Salman is trying to rebrand the kingdom in the model of Qatar and the UAE – two states with human rights issues that have become part of the global order.

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