Former CEO of Manchester City Garry Cook now serves as Executive President & CEO of the Saudi Pro League!

By Saoud Moussa Baccus

Screenshot of Garry Cook's LinkedIn profile (accessed on 28 January 2023).

Further evidence that the Saudi Pro League means business. News that Garry Cook, a former CEO of Manchester City, has been appointed to run the Saudi Pro League should not come as a surprise.

Previous football-related decisions should serve as a preamble to the appointment of the new CEO. First, the Saudi Public Investment Fund bought Newcastle of the English Premier League. That was the sound of the bugle waking the world up. Second, and very significantly, a women’s football league was launched in February 2020. Third, Al Nassr scooped up Ronaldo for an astronomical sum. Fourth, Saudi Arabia is going to bid to host the FIFA World Cup in 2030. Hence, the arrival of Garry Cook at the helm of the Saudi Pro League should be looked through the prism of a vision to make Saudi Arabia a powerhouse in football. There shouldn’t be any doubt about that anymore.

"Garry Cook was hired with one main objective, that of developing the Saudi Pro League into an influential football brand akin to the English Premier League"

But there is more to the appointment of the new CEO. Garry Cook was a marketing executive with Nike’s Air Jordan brand and was instrumental in its success. He was also a main architect in transforming Manchester City into an authoritative team in English football. This should not be overlooked.

Garry Cook was hired with one main objective, that of developing the Saudi Pro League into an influential football brand akin to the English Premier League. He is the man with international exposure who has been given the responsibility to steer the ship in a new direction.

Although the Saudi Pro League is just one cog in the wheel, albeit an important one, the appointment of Garry Cook epitomizes the ambition to transform football in the desert kingdom into a known and powerful entity.

Stay tuned for more cogs to be added to the wheel.