The Public Investment Fund, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, has made its first investment in North American soccer as part of a new multi-year partnership with CONCACAF. The two organizations come together as North America prepares to host the 2026 Men’s World Cup and potentially the 2031 Women’s World Cup.

The agreement was announced on Thursday, with both sides pledging to promote soccer in North America, the Caribbean and Central America. A press release said the PIF’s involvement will help CONCACAF increase the number of official youth competitions that serve as qualifying tournaments for the FIFA Under-17 and Under-20 World Cups.

“Together, we will drive a series of initiatives to create a positive and lasting impact across all CONCACAF competitions,” Mohamed Alsayyad, PIF’s head of corporate brand, said in a statement.

PIF planted its flag in soccer when it bought four of Saudi Arabia’s top clubs, including Al-Nassr, which signed Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo to the most lucrative contract in sport, paying him $215 million a year. The fund is also part of a consortium that owns English Premier League team Newcastle United.

The fund has long made a name for itself with sports investments, but as part of Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 campaign, the portfolio gained even greater notoriety in 2021 when it launched LIV Golf and bought Newcastle. (The planned merger between LIV, the PGA Tour and the DP World Tour is not yet finalized, and LIV has recently scaled back its lobbying efforts as Congress focuses on the fund itself.)

Jeddah hosts the Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, the final race on the F1 calendar. WWE maintains its long-standing relationship with the Saudis, which began in 2014, by hosting two “premium live events” per year as part of a 10-year agreement signed in 2018. Several boxing and mixed martial arts promotions, including Top Rank, Matchroom Boxing and the Professional Fighters League, regularly host events across the country.

In March, the fund offered to buy the ATP and WTA for $2 billion amid rumors of a merger between the two tours. PIF has since established a working relationship with the ATP and is seeking the same with the WTA.

The WTA’s potential relationship with the PIF has raised eyebrows given the Saudi kingdom’s human rights issues and the fact that women have only been allowed to play tennis in Saudi Arabia since 2018. With the PIF’s new alignment with CONCACAF, those concerns are likely to resurface as the United States and Mexico plan a joint bid to host the 2031 Women’s World Cup.

Saudi Arabia itself will host the 2034 Men’s World Cup. The country was the only candidate for the event.