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The King of Saudi Arabia has offered to build the world's largest football stadium in Baghdad, Iraq, for free:
[According] to Arabnews.com, that is precisely what has happened to the Iraq football association, who this week, following their recent 4-1 friendly win over Saudi Arabia, have been afforded the opportunity to house a 135,000-seater stadium within Baghdad after King Salman offered to foot the bill.
"I have received a phone call from the King of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdul Aziz", Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said.
"He hailed Iraqi's victory (in the friendly match between the two sides last week) and expressed his preparedness and commitment to expanding positive relations between Iraq and Saudi Arabia at different levels - economical, commercial, communal, cultural - at all levels that are of interest for the two countries.
"He also offered Saudi Arabia's contribution to build a main stadium in Iraq that accommodates 100,000 people. We have welcomed the initiative and it was proposed today to the Cabinet."
Also at Reuters.
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Tuesday March 13 2018, @10:40AM (5 children)
Keith Laumer [wikipedia.org] wrote a humorous / satirical series of books about Retief [wikipedia.org], a diplomat-about-the-galaxy.
In these books, the good guys (Retief's crew, the CDT, or Corps Diplomatique Terrestrienne) were constantly building free football stadiums for aliens they were trying to sidle up to and make nice with. Who generally had no use for said stadia at all.
The bad guys, the Groaci, would, as a matter of competition for these same alien's affections, build free ballet theaters... also of no use to the various tentacled, winged and creepy-crawly alien species.
Although I'm sure the Iraqis will find a nice use for this. Perhaps even soccer games.
(Score: 0, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday March 13 2018, @05:02PM (1 child)
The Iraqi team already beat the Saudi team 4-1, assuming the match wasn't thrown. Pretty sure they meant soccer too. F(u|oo)tball everywhere but the US means soccer.
Secondly the key statement about this is: commitment to expanding positive relations between Iraq and Saudi Arabia at different levels - economical, commercial, communal, cultural
They want to push Saudi Cultural norms on Iraq, eventually push out/purge the Kurds and Shiite Muslims, and when its not used for football events, use the stadium to host extremist religious events and public persecution/executions, helping to cement they or their local allies control over the region. People often forget that while Stadiums are basically the modern merger of Coliseums, ancient Greek stadiums, and sometimes even circuses (roman equivalent of the modern horse race track, which are usually but not always held at dedicated courses.)
Stadiums make excellent venues for political speech and examples after all.... Watch for Wahabbism to spread to Iraq if this happens and this stadium to be central to its rise to power.
What is that old statement about 'Watch out for those who come bearing gifts'? This, along with American/Chinese/European investment opportunities, sound like exactly that.
If by some chance the King turns out to really be doing this for mostly altruistic means, then by all means ignore my warning above. But I have yet to find someone with that much money or power who does ANYTHING for altruistic reasons. Certainly not if they wish to retain it.
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Tuesday March 13 2018, @05:22PM
Whoosh
(Score: 3, Funny) by cmdrklarg on Tuesday March 13 2018, @08:39PM (2 children)
Just so they don't build Bolos for them.
The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.
(Score: 2) by fyngyrz on Tuesday March 13 2018, @10:38PM (1 child)
I want a Bolo. To go shopping in.
Preferably a continental seige unit.
(Score: 2) by cmdrklarg on Wednesday March 14 2018, @04:07PM
Mmm, yes, a Mark XXXIII would do nicely, yes...
The world is full of kings and queens who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.