Saudi Arabia, the world’s second largest oil producer, has gone into overdrive in recent years in its efforts to become a global player in international sports. It has spent billions of dollars on high-profile deals for an image makeover that involves reducing the country’s overdependence on oil. But detractors say the kingdom is using sport in a desperate attempt to divert international focus from its poor human rights record.
Until recently, the country was known for its oil and as the custodian of the two holy mosques, in Makkah and…
