Messi is new ambassador for Saudi Arabia tourism
Lionel Messi has been unveiled as an ambassador for tourism for Saudi Arabia, despite previously being urged to reject such overtures from the families of prisoners in the country.
A tweet from the Saudi Tourism Authority on Monday night showed Messi with his Paris Saint-Germain team-mate Leandro Parades in the background, with the caption: ‘We welcome Lionel Messi and his friends to Jeddah to enjoy Jeddah’s historical heritage and the beauty of the Red Sea – #Messi_Ambassador_For_Saudi_Tourism’.
Messi later shared a ‘sponsored by Visit Saudi’ post on Instagram from a yacht with the caption: ‘Discovering the Red Sea in Saudi. #VisitSaudi’.
Back in February, after it emerged via The Telegraph that Messi had been approached by the Saudi tourism board, families of prisoners of conscience wrote a letter that urged Messi not to get involved.
The letter was organised by human rights body Grant Liberty and, via The Independent, said: ‘You are an inspiration to millions and what you say and do really matters. To put it bluntly – you have enormous power, but with that power comes great responsibility.
‘The Saudi regime wants to use you to launder its reputation. Prisoners of conscience in Saudi Arabia have been tortured, sexually assaulted, and held in prolonged solitary confinement – often for months at a time – on an industrial scale.
‘Women’s rights campaigners, reformist preachers, Shia activists, democracy campaigners, indeed anyone who criticises or even questions the regime can face long-term imprisonment and in some cases the death penalty.
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“If you say ‘yes’ to Visit Saudi you are in effect saying yes to all the human rights abuses that take place today in modern Saudi Arabia. But if you say ‘no’ you will send an equally powerful message – that human rights matter, that decency matters, that those who torture and murder do not do so with impunity. The world must stand up to those who trample on others.’
In 2019, David Beckham was criticised for agreeing to play in an exhibition match in the country alongside his former Real Madrid team-mate Zinedine Zidane.