Meet the billionaires behind Al-Hilal’s world record £259m bid for Mbappe

PSG have accepted a world record £259 million transfer fee from Al-Hilal for wantaway striker Kylian Mbappe.

The French giants are desperate for a sale this year to avoid Mbappe leaving Parc des Princes as a free agent next summer, and as such they have granted Al-Hilal permission to speak with the player.

However, the 24 year-old is said to be uninterested in a move to the Saudi Pro League and his preference is to hold out for Real Madrid in 2024.

Along with the transfer fee, the Saudi side have also reportedly offered Mbappe a jaw-dropping £604 million in wages for just a single season with the club.

So, who exactly are the owners behind the Al-Hilal mega-money offer and which players have they signed so far during the summer 2023 transfer window?

Here is everything you need to know.

Who owns Al-Hilal?
Al Hilal is under shared ownership, with the Public Investment Fund (PIF) the majority owner with a 75% share.

The remaining 25% is controlled by the Al Hilal Non-Profit Foundation.

The PIV is the sovereign wealth fund of Saudi Arabia, and with total estimated assets of around £320 billion, it is one of the largest in the world.

It was set up in 1971 to invest money on behalf of the government, and has been controlled by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, since 2015.

The PIF is playing a crucial part in Saudi’s strategy, named Vision 2030, to diversify the nation’s economy away from its dependence on oil.

The sovereign wealth fund bought Newcastle United for £300 million in October 2021, acquiring an 80% stake in the Premier League side with PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan installed as the club’s chairman.

As well as taking control of Al-Hilal in June, the PIF also took a 75% stake in three of the other biggest teams in the Kingdom as it attempts to turbo boost the profile of the league; Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli and Al-Nassr.

Al-Hilal are the most decorated team in Asia, with 66 official honours to their name, including a record eight AFC Champions League titles.

Which players have Al-Hilal signed so far?
Ruben Neves ended his six-year stay at Wolves with a £47 million move to the club in June.

Aged just 26, the Portuguese midfielder’s transfer represented the first time that a player deemed to be in his prime has moved to the Saudi Pro League.

Neves is joined at Al-Hilal by Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, who swapped Champions League football with Lazio to move to the Middle East in a £34 million deal.

The hugely talented midfielder, 28, had been regularly linked with some of the biggest names in European football over the past few seasons.

Kalidou Koulibaly also now plys his trade in Riyadh following his £17 million move from Chelsea, where he spent a sole season having only signed from Napoli last year.

The squad also contains former West Brom player Matheus Pereira and ex-Porto striker Moussa Marega, although the duo are not currently registered to play.

Former Benfica and Sporting winger Andre Carrillo has been with Al-Hilal since 2018.