Saudi Arabian billionaire Al Waleed bin Talal Al Saud has offered the Al-Hilal squad a staggering bonus for reaching the Club World Cup final.
And he is ready to pay out another massive fee if they are able to claim an unlikely win in the final against potential opponents Real Madrid.
Al-Hilal were nominated to take part in the tournament by the Asian Football Confederation and defeated Wydad Casablanca in the second round. That set up a semi-final clash with Brazilian giants Flamengo, which was held on Tuesday night. Al-Hilal were able to claim a stunning win against the reigning Copa Libertadores champions and reach the final for the first time in their history.
Salem Al Dawsari gave the Saudi side the lead from the penalty spot just four minutes in after Matheuzinho tripped Luciano Vietto. Pedro equalised 15 minutes later from close range, before Al Dawsari again slotted in a penalty.
Vietto won the spot-kick again, with Gerson sent off for stomping on the Argentine in the box. And the duo combined again with 20 minutes to go to seal a famous win for Al-Hilal, with Al Dawsari turning provider for Vietto to score from point-blank range.
While Pedro did score in injury time, it was too little, too late for Flamengo, with Al-Hilal becoming the first Saudi side to reach the Club World Cup final as a result. The Blue Waves will be handsomely rewarded for that feat, thanks to Al Saud.
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The founder of Kingdom Holding Company, which has a market capitalisation of more than £14billion, has pledged to pay each member of the Al Hilal squad a £222,000 bonus for reaching the final.
He will pay out another £222,000 to each player if they win the final, which will be held on Saturday. The second semi-final is to be played on Wednesday evening, with Real Madrid taking on Egyptian side Al Ahly.
Al-Hilal coach Ramon Diaz expressed his pride at seeing his team claim the stunning win over Flamengo. And he insisted that the Brazilian giants had underestimated his players' abilities.
“We are all happy because Al-Hilal is the largest club in Saudi Arabia, and we are proud to represent it and of the successes that we are achieving. Perhaps they were surprised by the players’ skills and our way of playing," he said.
"In the first half, they only created one attack, and it was a very intense tactical match. Vietto was the playmaker and excels at perpetrating the opposition team. He is developing a lot and is very important to us.
“We saw a strong team that could not reach our goal often, and this is evidence of the quality of our team’s tactics and players. We were playing one against one instead of three against three, and we played a great match and dominated for majority of its course.”
