Visit Saudi will not be a sponsor at the women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand, but FIFA president Gianni Infantino has not ruled out future commercial opportunities for the gulf nation in women’s football.
The Saudi Arabia tourism board had been touted as a potential sponsor of the expanded 32-team tournament, which drew sharp criticism from a number of quarters, though Infantino says it is all a "storm in a tea cup".
The greatest ire came from Football Australia (FA), who said there was an "overwhelming consensus that this partnership does not align with our collective vision for the tournament and falls short of our expectations".
Other leading figures in the women's game also criticised the plan, including veteran US forward Alex Morgan, who said it 'morally' did not make sense.
"There were discussions with Visit Saudi, but in the end these did not lead to a contract. So it was a storm in a teacup," Infantino said at FIFA’s Congress in Kigali.
"But having said that, FIFA is an organisation made up of 211 countries. There is nothing wrong with taking sponsorships from Saudi Arabia, China, United States of America, Brazil or India."
Infantino (above) added that critics of the potential sponsorship ignored the commercial arrangements that already exist between companies in Saudi Arabia and Australia.
"When it comes to Australia, they have trade with Saudi Arabia (worth) $1.5-billion per year. This doesn't seem to be a problem?
"There is a double standard which I really do not understand. There is no issue, there is no contract, but of course we want to see how we can involve Saudi sponsors, and those from Qatar, in women's football generally," he said.
FA chief executive James Johnson said in a statement they are pleased there is clarity on the situation.
"We welcome clarification from FIFA regarding Visit Saudi," he said. "Equality, diversity and inclusion are really deep commitments for Football Australia and we’ll continue to work hard with FIFA to ensure the Women’s World Cup is shaped in this light.
"It is a historic event for our nation, showcasing the world’s greatest female players and advancing the game globally."
Saudi Arabia Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has introduced reforms allowing women greater control over their lives in recent years but men still retain a tight grip on power in the kingdom.
Meanwhile prize money for the 2023 Women's World Cup will be $150m [€141.3m], 10 times what it was in 2015 and three times the amount of 2019.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced the figure his closing remarks to the 73rd FIFA Congress on Thursday.
It is, however, is still considerably lower than the $440m [€414.6m] million total prize money awarded at the men's World Cup in Qatar last year.
"For the first time ever, I [plan to] dedicate a specific portion of this payment, which mainly has to go to football development, but a specific portion of that should go of course to the players," Infantino said, in announcing step two of his three-step plan.
Step one, Infantino said, will be equal conditions and services for all men and women playing at a World Cup.
"This will be a reality already for the Cup in 2023, same conditions as for the World Cup 22 will be for the players and coaching staff in the Women's World Cup in 23."
Step three, he said, would be the most complicated and would include a dedicated marketing strategy for the women's game.
"Our mission will be able to have equality in payments for 2026 men's and 2027 women's World Cups."
The Republic of Ireland are currently gearing up for their first ever appearance at a Women's World Cup.
They will start the tournament against co-hosts Australia in Sydney on 20 July, before facing reigning Olympic champions Canada in Perth and Nigeria in Brisbane.
Watch Derry City v Sligo Rovers in the League of Ireland live on Friday from 7.35pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Player
