The dangers of ‘balanced journalism’: A call for journalists to scrutinise Saudi’s sports investments

Today, I’ll focus on three essential elements: The vital role of journalism, the lack of investigative reporting on the Saudi regime’s sports strategy, and the risks of ‘balanced journalism’ in covering authoritarian regimes.

Let me begin on a very positive note: It is first and foremost thanks to courageous journalists and whistleblowers that we know about the darker sides of sports and the depth of corruption involved.

This year, Play the Game marked its 25th anniversary with the book ' When the silence of sport was broken - Sports politics in the times of Play the Game’. The book isn’t so much about Play the Game but honours those who exposed doping, corruption, match-fixing, athlete abuse, and political interference in sports.

To me, the book is also a testament to the reporting of many brave journalists over the last three decades – and to the importance of rigorous, high-quality journalism.

And we need that kind of journalism now more than ever as Saudi Arabia’s influence in sports is rapidly growing.

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has poured billions of dollars into sports, from football and motorsports to boxing and esports. This is not some casual investment strategy; it’s a top-down, calculated effort to build goodwill, establish diplomatic connections, attract tourism, and, perhaps most importantly, obscure human rights abuses.

Remember, the upcoming host of the FIFA World Cup in 2034 is the same regime that is trying to reshape its reputation from being a pervasive violator of human rights.

Saudi Arabia is associated with the brutal killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018, serious international human rights and humanitarian law violations in Yemen, severe lack of LGBTQI+ rights, widespread and systemic abuse of migrant workers, and the imprisonment of human rights defenders and women’s rights activists, who often face arbitrary arrests, torture, and travel bans.

This is where journalism should step in – asking hard questions, holding those in power accountable, and resisting easy narratives. But this is rarely the case in sports journalism.

The dangers of “balanced journalism”

One of the challenges I’ve seen and experienced in journalistic work over the last couple of years is the notion of “balanced journalism,” or what the media platform Medium describes as “doggedly reporting ‘both sides’ with little interrogation of the legitimacy or evidence behind each argument.” I agree with Medium that this can lead to misleading coverage and an outright misrepresentation of facts.

Often, those wanting “balanced reporting” and “nuances” mean that the reporting needs to give equal weight to Mohammed bin Salman’s reforms and the human rights abuses and atrocities happening in the country.

However, presenting Saudi Arabia’s so-called reforms on one side and severe human rights violations on the other isn’t necessarily balance – it can as well become a cover and create a dangerous and false balance that risks legitimising oppression.

Consider this: When interviewing someone who immediately praises Saudi Arabia’s reform programmes, economic growth, job creation, and new entertainment options, ask yourself: What is being glossed over or what’s the larger picture here? All too often, these statements go unchallenged, helping the narrative the Saudi regime would like you to portray.

When sports leaders say they see no problems regarding the upcoming FIFA World Cup in Saudi Arabia, do your homework. Have the knowledge to question them about issues such as governance, sustainability and human rights atrocities.

“Balanced” journalism that gives equal weight to positive and negative aspects often dilutes hard truths and makes repression and human rights abuses seem like just “another nuance”.

Controlling the narrative

When FIFA awards the 2034 World Cup to Saudi Arabia in less than a month, the media needs to step up – now, not in 2034.

Go beyond the press releases and the whataboutism. See through the staged photo ops. Question the motivations, scrutinise the governance structures of Saudi-backed initiatives, and push back against PR narratives that seek to sanitise the Kingdom’s image.

Last month, a journalist from The Telegraph had his credentials revoked for criticising the Saudi regime and was barred from covering a major boxing match in London under the Riyadh Season banner – a six-month festival mainly held in Riyadh and backed by Saudi Arabia’s regime, but now also travelling to other countries.

This is a clear example of the Saudi regime’s efforts to control the narrative. It also parallels findings from a New York Times investigation by Karim Zidan and Tariq Panja into Lionel Messi’s contract with the Saudi tourism authority, which included a non-disparagement clause which bars Messi from making any statements that might “tarnish” Saudi Arabia’s reputation.

Autonomy or immunity?

Another overlooked area is the governance of Saudi’s sports investments.

When sports bodies argue for the 'autonomy of sport' to justify avoiding these discussions, they’re effectively shielding themselves – and, by extension, regimes like Saudi Arabia – from legitimate criticism.

This needs to be challenged. Sports autonomy should not mean immunity from scrutiny. Are we really going to let the “autonomy of sport” be the excuse that allows Saudi Arabia to further entrench its influence without questions?

Furthermore, sports leaders who welcome Saudi money should be asked, publicly and persistently, how they reconcile these investments with the values they claim to uphold.

How – for instance – can FIFA justify a 100-million-dollar annual sponsorship from Saudi Arabia's oil giant, Aramco, considering the fact that the UN calls for a ban on fossil fuel advertising and that Aramco’s expanding oil production also directly contravenes the Paris Agreement, which FIFA requires its partners to comply with?

Unfortunately, I also still experience people saying that sports journalism is often less serious than politics or finance. This view is outdated.

Sport has become a political tool, and covering it requires the same level of rigour and commitment as any other area of statecraft, geopolitics, or corruption investigations.

Moving forward

On top of that, many media outlets, their owners, and editors are not prioritising investigative journalism in the sports domain. At best, it’s alarmingly scarce.

When media and journalists report on these investments without scrutinising their full impact, they are essentially becoming part of the propaganda machine that Saudi Arabia would like to create.

Saudi Arabia’s investments are not just financially problematic; they’re ethically and politically disturbing. They threaten to erode the very values sport claims to represent – values like democracy, inclusivity, and freedom of expression. Which by the way are also the values the journalistic profession is based on.

And if the media and journalists don’t investigate the consequences of this trend, who will?

So, where do we go from here? I believe media outlets and journalists must put the critical aspects of Saudi Arabia’s engagement in sport at the forefront of their reporting. Editors and media owners need to allocate resources to support in-depth journalism on integrity issues in sport.

Play the Game is here to assist with new research, insights, and not least connecting journalists with key sources from our global network.

But the next steps depend on you – your courage to allocate resources, dig deeper, ask the hard questions, and challenge the narratives that both sports organisations and authoritarian regimes work to control.