Gulf countries have been investing billions of dollars to European football teams as a strategy to boost their image abroad. Particularly Qatar and the UAE are racing head-to-head to lure attention of the world by buying famous football teams.
While the UAE bought Manchester City, Qatar responded by acquiring Paris Saint Germain (PSG). Both countries transferred best players to raise national and international trophies. Particularly winning champions league has become the main goal of the two Gulf countries.
With yesterday’s win, Qatar-owned PSG has beaten UAE-owned Manchester City in number of champions league trophies. While PSG raised two trophies, Manchester City raised once. Each team was runner-up for once.
While both countries’ investment in football pays off, Qatar seems to be one step ahead of the UAE. How next years will change the equation and in favor ıf whom is yet to be learned.
