How an ex-Buli professional lives in Saudi Arabia's second division

Alexander Hack will play for Mainz 05 in the Bundesliga until summer 2023. Then he moves to Saudi Arabia. Although he only plays in the second division there, there is a lot more money than at home. A stroke of luck. Ezgjan Alioski can't say that about himself.

When Alexander Hack hears about the interest from Saudi Arabia, he and his girlfriend first use an online map service to find out where this Al-Khobar is actually located. That was a few months ago and now the 30-year-old is sitting in a smart residential complex with beach access in the east of Saudi Arabia and is a player for al-Qadisiya, a second division club.

"Second division, Saudi Arabia? That's difficult for me to do," says Hack, describing his initial thoughts following the exotic request. But after many discussions with the club, his advisor, his girlfriend and his family, it became clear that the "framework conditions", as Hack calls them, were right. A medium-sized city with 400,000 inhabitants right by the sea, a lively city center and - last but not least - a club that was recently taken over by Saudi Aramco. An oil giant, one of the richest companies in the world, but also one of the biggest climate killers on the planet.

At Mainz 05, for whom Hack has played 133 times in the Bundesliga, the central defender is a crowd favorite and feels at home. But after an injury last season, the chances of him getting much playing time are slim, his time in German professional soccer. There are talks with promoted Darmstadt 98 and FC Augsburg, but Hack decides that the only way forward for him in the Bundesliga would have been with Mainz 05. Hack admits, and the central defender is very open about this, that the pay was of course one, if not the decisive factor in his move to the desert.

"You've heard how much you can earn here and then you look at the other circumstances. The region, the club, the staff and in the end it all fitted and that's why I ended up here." In the end, Hack now earns around four times as much as in the Bundesliga. He doesn't want to name a figure. But the fact is: Hack was certainly not a salary millionaire in Mainz; in Saudi Arabia, the defender now earns several million a year.

"No sense of human rights at all"

"I'm now 30 years old, so at the end of my career it's obviously good to build up a certain amount of financial security." At the end of his contract, Hack will not only have provided for himself, but also for his family. The income is largely tax-free. Hack doesn't have to pay anything for the apartment and the BMW on his doorstep, the club is generous. But of course there is the country where he earns his money. Saudi Arabia is criticized for human rights violations.

The kingdom has an impressively negative human rights record. But it also has an even more gigantic store of money and even more power. In the context of soccer and sport, Saudi Arabia has achieved spectacular supremacy in recent months and years. They are involved in Formula 1, boxing and golf. What is called "sportswashing" in Europe is much more a grab for power in the context of the geopolitically complicated Gulf region and a hedge against unrest among its own population. Bread and circuses in a kingdom where there is no freedom of expression or assembly and regime critics fear for their lives.

Last year, 81 people were executed in one particularly bloody day in March alone. In 2018, journalist Jamal Kashoggi was allegedly murdered in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, at least with the approval of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. "Values forgotten at the airport. No sense of human rights at all. Doesn't stand up for anything. Of course I hear that," says Hack, describing the criticism he receives. But anyone who knows him knows that this is not true. Hack gets involved, donates a lot locally, for example, for people who are not as well off as he is. And he hopes that it is "a development phase that Saudi Arabia is currently going through." In his eyes, the death penalty and the kafala system, which effectively turns guest workers into serfs, should be abolished - "hopefully it won't take the country too long," he says energetically.

"Only eight foreigners are allowed to play and there are nine of us"

From today's perspective, Ezgjan Alioski can be described as a kind of "early adopter". The Swiss transferred to the league in 2021 and is under contract with Al-Ahli. The defender made 30 competitive appearances in his first season, returning to Fenerbahce Istanbul on loan in the summer of 2023 and initially playing four games for the club. A clip circulated on the internet of Alioski saying goodbye to the fans when he was substituted in the 98th minute of the match on the fourth matchday in question. As if he knew what was going to happen. "There's a rule here," explains the 31-year-old. "Only eight foreigners are allowed to play and there are nine of us. And all eight who have come are new. I heard from the media that it might be me who would be removed from the list," says Alioski. Alioski loses his opportunity to work and has not played a single game for Al-Ahli since.

Instead: Training, training and more training. With the team, but also with a personal coach. The only rays of hope are the games with the North Macedonian national team that the dual national can play. "When you know you can't even help the team, not even in the next game or the game after that, that hurt me. I didn't even go to the stadium at first. But then I found motivation: I try to analyze the team, to help the team that way."

Matthias Jaissle, a German, has been the coach since July. Both speak to each other regularly, the appreciation is clearly there, his system of play with tall full-backs would also suit Alioski, but it's no use. According to ntv, it is not only the coach who decides who is on the pitch, but also the club's management. The preference of those in charge of the club is simply for expensive new arrivals, regardless of their quality or how well they fit into the playing system. And so there is currently no chance for Alioski, who continues to receive his salary from the club on time. "That's why it was never really understood. It's not usual for the club to simply keep a player and pay him as normal," says Alioski. It seems as if Alioski is looking to blame the club. "It wasn't fair the way it was done, because the transfer window was still open for a long time. I could still have transferred if they had spoken to me or my agency. But we still don't know what's possible."

However, giving up has never been an option for Ezgjan Alioski. He wants clarity in the winter transfer window from January 2024. If he is eligible to play for Al-Ahli, for example because another international professional drops out or transfers, then he would like to stay in the desert. Alioski's frustration is very clear in the conversation. It's hard to imagine that he wants to stay at the club for much longer.

The third option would be a rule change, but the league's technical director, Michael Emenalo, doesn't hold out much hope: "A process like that would take some time, if it happens at all." Sounds like it will remain at 8 international players per club for the time being. Nevertheless, Alioski can laugh at the end of the interview. He is already a bit of a "victim" of the money. And that makes him the opposite of Alexander Hack. But neither of them is really in a bad way.