Footballer Georginio Wijnaldum defends Saudi move, saying “everybody is welcome” there
Georginio Wijnaldum spoke publicly for the first time about his decision to play football in Saudi Arabia. The midfielder said he believes “everyone is welcome” there, despite the country’s notorious history of human rights abuses and strict laws against homosexuality, which it has only recently tried to mitigate by encouraging LGBTQ tourism.
Wijnaldum spoke to the press from the Dutch men’s national team training camp in Zeist on Tuesday. It was the first time he gave interviews since his move to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ettifaq.
“Everybody has an image of Saudi Arabia, but I have to say, for me, it has been very different,” the midfielder said. He did admit that he effectively lives in a small bubble in the Middle Eastern country, telling NOS he doesn’t really take part in city life, instead spending most of his time training.
“I really have to see how society works, and see what is and is not allowed. And whether or not gays are allowed somewhere? That is something I I didn’t see it. From what I have seen, everybody is welcome in Saudi, and life is actually very good,” he continued.
Saudi Arabia is often criticized for accusations of human rights abuses. Its use of the Wahabbist interpretation of Sharia law includes the prospect of punishing unmarried people by imprisoning and flogging people convicted of acts of homosexuality or involvement as another sexual minority. Married people can be punished with death by stoning under traditional Islamic law.
Wijnaldum was mainly criticized for joining the Saudi Arabian league, which is accused of engaging in a form of “sportwashing,” where sponsoring a sports team or event is a means to distract from bad practices and behavior. Prior to moving to the country, he frequently spoke out against racism, and in favor inclusivity. As Oranje’s captain, he also first donned the OneLove armband meant to promote those values.
“I’m having a lot of fun. A lot of people have a prejudice about Saudi Arabia, so I don’t know if people will believe me. But I decided to be honest and tell my story,” he added.
The midfielder shared that Al-Ettifaq was not his first choice destination. The 33-year-old wanted to rejoin Feyenoord last summer but would not accept the significant pay cut and transfer fee necessary for his return to Rotterdam.
“I wanted to go to Feyenoord. But PSG wanted 10 million euros for me, and that was without my wages, so it was impossible to realize.”
Wijnaldum played for Feyenoord from 2007 to 2011 before joining PSV. He admitted that he could have made the move happen. “Of course, something could have been sorted, but I would have had to sacrifice a lot salary-wise. I did not want that, so I had to make a different decision.”
Fewer than a thousand spectators attended Wijnaldum’s first match playing for Al-Ettifaq at their home stadium. The team is averaging an audience of about 8,250 per home match at Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, which seats 35,000 in total. He routinely played in front of crowds of over 52,000 people with Liverpool, and over 62,000 people attended AS Roma matches when he was loaned to the Italian club.
Since joining Al-Ettifaq, Wijnaldum has scored six goals and assisted two others in 19 Saudi Pro League matches. His three-year contract expires at the end of June 2026.
The Netherlands is training for friendlies against Scotland on Friday and Germany next Tuesday. Manager Ronald Koeman’s decision to call up Wijnaldum was criticized by many due to the midfielder’s age and the average skill level on display in the Saudi Arabian league.
