“I’m bullish on Saudi football”: Ben Harburg on owning Al-Kholood and facing players like Ronaldo

Ben Harburg becomes the first foreign owner in Saudi Pro League history, taking over Al-Kholood and competing in a league with stars like Cristiano Ronaldo, João Félix, and Karim Benzema.

At 41 years old, Ben Harburg has lived in a number of locations across North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia, but today he finds himself increasingly traveling back to Saudi Arabia after making a historic purchase. Harburg became the first-ever foreign owner in the history of Saudi soccer when he acquired 100% of Saudi Pro League side Al-Kholood on July 24, 2025, the latest in a series of strategic investments that have defined his career in finance.

“Historically, clubs in Saudi Arabia were predominantly owned by the government, not individuals,” Harburg stated in an exclusive World Soccer Talk interview. “Even today, I’m the only individual owner in Saudi clubs. The government started privatization a few years ago, with government-affiliated entities acquiring some clubs. So far, eight clubs have been bought this way. I am the first foreign investor in Saudi Arabian soccer and likely the first in the Middle East, because most other clubs in the region are owned by government-affiliated entities, royal family members, or ministries of sport. It’s fairly unique.”

Born in Colorado Springs, Harburg moved across Michigan, Switzerland, Egypt, and Spain. Like many others such as Lalas Abubakar and James Richardson, he fell in love with soccer as a teenager after attending a Cádiz match in 1997. Harburg received a Fulbright scholarship to attend the Freie Universität Berlin, where he studied Islamic studies and oriental philology, and he became a Neubauer Scholar at Tufts University. He spent time in Berlin, Dubai, Southeast Asia, and China, co-founding one of Asia’s largest commodity trading companies before selling out of commodities in 2010 to focus on venture capital and technology. Since then, he has enjoyed widespread success as a Managing Partner at MSA Capital, a global investment firm with over $2 billion in assets under management, including strategic investments in companies like Palantir, Uber, and Airbnb.

“What the $2 billion refers to is the money we’ve raised from outside investors to invest on their behalf. That’s not my personal wealth. We manage funds from institutional investors like endowments, foundations, pensions, and sovereign funds. The number may seem large, but we benchmark ourselves daily against firms managing $10, 15, or even $50 billion,” Harburg explained.

“This experience helps me as an investor and sports executive. I’m used to highly institutional environments involving governance, reporting, and sound investment decisions. Everything I do on the technology side is mirrored in football — creating value, improving performance, and strategic growth — and the results have been strong so far.”

Harburg made his first sporting investment after watching the Netflix documentary Sunderland ‘Til I Die, plotting Spain’s top three division teams in a spreadsheet and analyzing key figures: city size, stadium size, fan base, GDP per capita, legal issues, and club valuations. He first invested in Cádiz in October 2021, and nearly four years later, he completed a full takeover of Al-Kholood.

“It was a unique opportunity to be the first independent investor,” Harburg said. “I’m not only the first foreign owner in the Saudi top division, but also the first purely financially-driven investor. That’s important because I compete against government-owned clubs that don’t need to make a profit. It’s like building a private army alongside a military with unlimited resources.”

Unlike other Saudi teams with virtually infinite budgets, Al-Kholood operates on a limited budget. After finishing ninth in their first top-flight season, the club invested just over €5 million in 11 new players, including Orlando City striker Ramiro Enrique. In contrast, Al-Nassr spent €105 million on transfers, reinforcing a squad that includes João Félix, Sadio Mané, and Cristiano Ronaldo.

“I own 100% of Al-Kholood,” Harburg added. “We’re competing against players like Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, and the top stars in the league. Our budget is a fraction of what clubs like Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad, or Al-Hilal spend, but I believed it was the right decision. I’m bullish on Saudi Arabian football — the country has a massive soccer fan base, a rich pedigree, and top talent. Salaries now surpass even the Bundesliga or Ligue 1.”

“We’ve got global superstars like João Félix, Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, you name it, so the quality of soccer is very high. Saudi Arabia’s a really authentic soccer market. You’ve got about 75% of people in Saudi Arabia who would describe themselves as football fans, which is the highest in the world.”

Currently, Harburg is focused on his work with Al-Kholood, who, after losing their first two matches against Al-Ettifaq and Al-Nassr, have since beaten Damac, Al-Shabab, and Al-Bukiryah in league and cup competitions. They aim to continue this winning streak in their next match against Al-Najma.