Why play the Saudi anthem before an all-British boxing match?

For only the second time in my life, I went to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia last weekend. At least, it felt like I was in Saudi. I’m talking about the Anthony Joshua-Daniel Dubois fight at Wembley Stadium. Billed as the British version of George Foreman vs Joe Frazier, it was bankrolled by the Saudis and might as well have been taking place in Riyadh.

The Master of Ceremonies was not Michael Buffer, then American ring announcer – although he was there and did say ‘Let’s get ready to rumble!’ – but His Excellency Turki Alalshikh, chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority. His moustachioed face, framed by a headdress, appeared constantly on the jumbotrons above our heads and we were treated to a close-up of him standing to attention as the Saudi national anthem was played. Yup, that’s right. Even though it was an all-British fight in our country’s most famous arena, ‘God Save the King’ wasn’t played until after ‘Ash al-Malik’.

I wasn’t there at the invitation of the organisers, which is just as well because someone who was – Oliver Brown, the Telegraph’s chief sports writer – got turned away for having written something critical about ‘Saudi sportswashing’ the day before.