In recent years, the petro-monarchies of the Persian Gulf have shown an increasing interest in glitzy sporting events from martial art to cycling and from football to car racing.
While the Arab courts of these monarchies are vying with each other in hosting such events, they are also trying to invest heavily in popular sports clubs around the world. Among these oil-rich monarchies, Bahrain has played, without doubt, a pioneering albeit controversial role.
Critics accuse the House of Khalifa that has long been ruling Bahrain with an iron first of "sportswashing", or the use of sports to distract attention from ongoing human rights concerns in the island.
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