in com.sa: The Crown Prince will be the chairman of the Board of Directors of the commission, of which the members include Minister of Sports Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal; Minister of Interior Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naif; Minister of Culture Prince Badr bin Abdullah; Minister of State and Member of the Council of Economic and Development Affairs Mohammed Al-Sheikh; Minister of Municipalities and Housing Majid Al-Hogail; Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan; Minister of Communications and Information Technology Eng. Abdullah Al-Swaha; Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Eng. Ahmed Al-Rajhi; Minister of Transport and Logistics Eng. Saleh Al-Jasser; Minister of Tourism Ahmed Al-Khateeb; Minister of Health Eng. Fahd Al-Jalajel; Minister of State and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Development Bodies Support Center Eng. Ibrahim Al-Sultan; Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority Turki Al-Sheikh; Governor of the Public Investment Fund Yasir Al-Rumayyan; Advisor to the Royal Court Dr. Fahad Toonsi; Advisor to the Royal Court Abdulaziz Tarabzouni; and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Saudi Football Federation Yasser Al-Misehal.

Via Matt Slater in nytimes.com: He has also made it clear he thinks sport will play a big part in this process, saying he wants to create a domestic sporting industry that contributes more than 2.5 per cent to the economy, and he has acknowledged that being more active is the best way to tackle Saudi Arabia’s alarming obesity and diabetes problems. Being more active applies to girls and women, too, so he has already lifted the restrictions on sport for girls in schools and encouraged investment in women’s professional sport. Yes, of course, this is coming from the lowest of bases — it was not happening at all only a few years ago — but it is also undeniably progress. When I add all this up, I come to the conclusion that if we truly believe sport brings people together and can impact changes that other governmental levers cannot — and I do believe that — might Saudi Arabia actually be a good choice for a World Cup?

in arabnews.com: Fireworks illuminated the skies of Riyadh, Jeddah, Alkhobar, Abha, NEOM, Al-Qassim, and Jubail at 8:34 p.m. on Wednesday, after the official announcement from an online ceremony that was broadcast at a Riyadh event attended by Sports Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal and other officials. The dazzling displays reflected the spirit of unity and excitement surrounding the country’s historic achievement. In celebration,  dynamic drone shows are to captivate audiences in Riyadh, Jeddah, Alkhobar, and Abha. The football-themed festivities, which run until Dec. 14, invite citizens and residents to showcase their national pride by wearing football jerseys and sharing their moments on social media using the hashtag #Saudi2034.

Via Barak Ravid in axios.com: White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan is expected to travel to Israel, Egypt and Qatar this week in a last ditch effort to reach a hostage-release and ceasefire in Gaza deal before President-elect Trumps inauguration in six weeks, two sources with knowledge of the trip told Axios. Sullivan will meet with Israeli leaders to discuss a number of issues, including a hostage-release and ceasefire in Gaza deal, the latest developments in Syria, as well as Lebanon and Iran, White House National Security Council spokesperson Sean Savett told Axios in a statement. He’s then planning to travel to Cairo and Doha to meet Egyptian and Qatari leaders and discuss their mediation efforts.

Via David Watkinson in bbc.com: Saudi Arabia has invested around £5bn in sports since 2021, when the countrys crown prince Mohammed bin Salman made it a key part of his strategy to diversify the economy, with a host of major sporting events brought to the kingdom, including high-profile boxing and Formula 1. The countrys domestic football league now includes world stars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Neymar Jr, and the countrys Public Investment Fund owns Newcastle United and launched the breakaway LIV golf series. However, the country has been accused of sportswashing – using its unprecedented spending on sport to improve the oil-producing kingdoms reputation over its human rights record and environmental impact. So what will a World Cup in Saudi Arabia look like?

Via Sean Mathews in middleeasteye.net: Gulf states who spent years trying to crush Islamic political movements viewed as a threat to their rule are now reconciling, potentially working with a government in Syria headed by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) that is backed by rival Turkey and courting the US.  Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Egypt have been caught off guard by what one Egyptian diplomat characterised to Middle East Eye as the “quick rebranding” of HTS, a former al-Qaeda affiliate. The UAE has also been unnerved by the US’s manoeuvring to open backchannels of communication to HTS via Turkey, according to a senior western official.

Via Alex Lawler in yahoo.com: OPEC cut its forecasts for oil demand growth this year and next on Wednesday, highlighting weakness in China, India and other regions in the producer groups fifth consecutive downward revision. The weaker outlook highlights the challenge facing OPEC+, which comprises the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies such as Russia. OPEC+ earlier this month delayed its plan to start raising output until April 2025 against a backdrop of falling prices. In a monthly report, OPEC said it expects 2024 global oil demand to rise by 1.61 million barrels per day (bpd), down from 1.82 million bpd last month. OPEC had kept the 2024 outlook unchanged until August, a view it had first taken in July 2023. The bulk of this revision is made in the third quarter, taking into account recently received bearish data for the third quarter, OPEC said in the report.

Via Tim Callen, Kristin Smith Diwan and Robert Mogielnicki in agsiw.org: On December 11, FIFA will announce that Saudi Arabia will host the 2034 World Cup. While this will be no surprise given the kingdom is the only bidder, the formal announcement will start the clock ticking on a decade of intense preparations ahead of the big kickoff. The 2034 tournament will be the first held in a single host country under the new expanded 48 team format. The 2026 and 2030 tournaments will also have 48 competing teams, but both will be held across multiple host countries: Canada, Mexico, and the United States in 2026 and Morocco, Portugal, and Spain in 2030. The World Cup is the most watched sporting event in the world. An estimated 5.4 billion television viewers tuned in for the 2022 tournament in Qatar, and 3.4 million people attended the matches. Hosting the 2034 World Cup therefore provides Saudi Arabia with a huge opportunity to present itself on the global stage, attract visitors to the country, and showcase the ambitious reforms that it is pursuing under Vision 2030. It will also offer the country a chance to address the criticism it has faced in certain parts of the world for its human rights record and its continued advocacy of fossil fuel usage.

Via Jennifer Bell in alarabiya.net: Saudi Arabia’s capital marked a historic milestone this month with the launch of its first metro system – and it is already proving to be an instant success with 1.9 million passengers utilizing the transport link in the first week of operations. Riyadh Metro, which began operations on December 1, is a multi-billion-dollar project featureing six color-coded lines spanning 176 kilometers with 85 stations, and has 183 trains manufactured by industry leaders Siemens, Bombardier, and Alstom, establishing itself as the world’s longest driverless metro network. The metro is designed to carry 1.2 million passengers daily, with plans to scale up to 3.6 million, helping to ease traffic jams and reduce reliance on cars.

Via Tim Dams in screendaily.com: In the years that followed Saudi Arabia’s reopening of cinemas in 2018, the country boasted arguably the most exciting and dynamic box-office market in the world. A cinema-building spree rapidly grew the country’s screen count to its current level of around 612. This helped Saudi leapfrog to the top of the Middle East market — the country accounts for an impressive 42% of region’s box office this year. In global terms, it is now the 15th biggest box-office market in the world, capable of delivering healthy returns for the right kind of film. Success stories include 2024 action thriller Bad Boys: Ride Or Die starring Will Smith and Martin Lawrence — the fourth entry in Sony Pictures Entertainment’s franchise is not only the biggest film of the year in Saudi but the biggest ever in the territory, with a healthy $23.5m at the box office.

Via Arthur Scott-Geddes in telegraph.co: They plan to plant seven-and-a-half million trees across the city and build numerous new parks and green spaces including one four times the size of Hyde Park. A new irrigation system using treated wastewater is being developed, and the building code is being rewritten taking inspiration from traditional local architecture to make new homes more energy efficient. Much is riding on the project’s success – making Riyadh a more appealing place to live to tempt in expats and foreign investment is a cornerstone of Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman’s efforts to overhaul the country’s image and diversify the economy away from oil. And with millions of people suffering from extreme heat in cities around the world – increasingly relying on environmentally disastrous air conditioning – the lessons Saudi Arabia learns could be vital to averting the worst effects of climate change in the coming decades.

Via William Roebuck and Hussein Ibish in agsiw.org: In a mere week, the map of Syria has undergone a shocking redrafting: not the cartographic map of straight lines and known cities but the geostrategic map of control, contestation, and military outcomes. The regime of ruthless autocrat Bashar al-Assad has collapsed after just a few days in political intensive care. The distracted and depleted Russian and Iranian regimes proved strikingly unable to provide the urgent, regime-saving intervention once again required, as when they jointly intervened in the fall of 2015 to save Assad from precisely this kind of scenario. A massive political earthquake struck Syria, reordering everything in ways that everyone, even its principal authors, are still struggling to comprehend and much of which has yet to play out. While other rebel groups, including the Syrian National Army, have a closer proxy relationship with Turkey, HTS in its current incarnation has been shaped significantly by Turkey’s handiwork. Ankara has used support, guidance, and the other strings and sticks of influence to shape the group (crucially including helping HTS clean up its image) and try to exert some control over it.

in livgolf.com: Torque GC Captain Joaquin Niemann completed a memorable season by winning the US$5million PIF Saudi International powered by SoftBank Investment Advisers following a dramatic playoff victory against Ripper GC Captain Cameron Smith and Legion XIII member Caleb Surratt. Niemann made a brilliant birdie following an exquisite lob shot to 12 inches on the second playoff hole to earn the trophy at Riyadh Golf Club, after Smith and Surrat missed their birdie attempts. The victory, worth US$1 million, also saw him finish top of The International Series rankings after an incredibly close finish to the race. It was a thrilling finish to the season-ending event on the Asian Tour and The International Series, which is also the most lucrative event of the season.

Via Muvija M in usnews.com: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will begin a multi-day visit to the Gulf on Sunday, his first trip to the region since taking office, seeking stronger economic and defence ties with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. He will aim to boost investment and deepen defence and security partnerships, the government said in a statement on Saturday, describing the two Middle Eastern countries as some of the UKs most vital modern-day partners. Starmer, elected to lead the worlds sixth-largest economy in July, will arrive in the UAE on Sunday, where he is due to hold talks with President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Monday. He will fly to Saudi Arabia later on Monday to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Via Hugo Bachega in bbc.com: Assad will forever be remembered as the man who violently repressed peaceful protests against his regime in 2011, which led to a civil war. More than half a million people were killed, six million others became refugees. With the help of Russia and Iran, he crushed the rebels, and survived. Russia used its formidable air power while Iran sent military advisors to Syria and Hezbollah, the militia it supports in neighbouring Lebanon, deployed its well-trained fighters. This did not happen this time. His allies, preoccupied with their own affairs, essentially abandoned him. Without their help, his troops were unable – and, in some places, apparently unwilling – to stop the rebels, led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS).