Arab world revels in Saudi win over Argentina at World Cup
The race for the top five World Cup spots and the chance to meet Saudi Arabia’s royal family could also be for sale.
The race for the top five World Cup spots and the chance to meet Saudi Arabia’s royal family could also be for sale — this time to a team from Saudi Arabia in a bid to gain recognition as the world’s next superpower, says a British journalist specializing in Arab geopolitics.
A new rivalry pits the powerhouse Saudis against the more modest, economically challenged, North Africans.
The race for the top five World Cup spots and the chance to meet Saudi Arabia’s royal family could also be for sale — this time to a team from Saudi Arabia in a bid to gain recognition as the world’s next superpower, says a British journalist specializing in Arab geopolitics.
A new rivalry pits the powerhouse Saudis against the more modest, economically challenged, North Africans.
“I think that is a very interesting thing,” said Richard Spencer, author of a new book, “The World Inside: A Global History of the Middle East,” which details the geopolitical competition between the top 15 countries in the world.
It’s the sort of issue that tends to get people talking, even if they don’t necessarily have anything to say, because it’s a hot topic, he said.
“I think that rivalry will continue for a long time.”
The Saudi vs. North African rivalry has “a good chance for a long fight,” Spencer added. “It’s the sort of issue that tends to get people talking, even if they don’t necessarily have anything to say, because it’s a hot topic. It’s a hot rivalry.”
Tensions simmering
The rivalry is simmering now, with a series of heated social media and media events between leaders of the two countries this summer, Spencer said.
The tensions began when Saudi Prince Mohammed bin Salman visited Egypt this summer and met with President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi.
For the Saudis, Prince Mohammed, the deputy crown prince, was an important political leader in the Kingdom
