Soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo and tech mogul Elon Musk have had dinner with US President Donald Trump and Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House.
Mr Trump opened his remarks by thanking some of the guests, including Ronaldo.
The president said he introduced his youngest son, Barron, to the soccer player, adding that his son was impressed with the meeting.
It was unclear why the footballer was in attendance, but the Portuguese striker has been the face of the Saudi football league since 2022.
At the black-tie dinner in the White House East Room, Mr Trump welcomed Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang, tech entrepreneur Elon Musk and other high-profile guests.
There was no shout out for Mr Musk, but the US president gave him a small tap on the arm as he walked into the dinner.
It was Mr Musk's first visit to the White House since he left his role after lashing out at Mr Trump earlier this year.
Musk's attendance could be a sign of reconciliation in a turbulent relationship between the Tesla CEO and the US president.
Other tech companies were represented at the dinner with Apple CEO Tim Cook and Dell CEO Michael Dell in attendance.
Dozens of executives from the finance, technology and energy sectors as well as the movie production and motor industries attended.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino was also in attendance. He has been a regular at the White House this year, ahead of next year's FIFA World Cup.
During dinner, Mr Trump announced he was designating Saudi Arabia as a major non-NATO ally as the administration aims to elevate the two nations' military relationship.
The designation, while largely symbolic, provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defence, trade and security cooperation.
Ronaldo sees Saudi crown prince as 'boss'
Ronaldo joined football club Al-Nassr at the end of 2022 on a reported $US536.3 million ($865 million) contract.
He has since signed a two-year extension over the summer for a reported $US710 million, which will keep him with Al-Nassr until at least the 2026-27 season.
Al-Nassr is majority-owned by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund that the crown prince chairs, and Ronaldo has been the figurehead leading Saudi Arabia's recent investment in its soccer league.
Saudi Arabia teams have invested over $US3 billion into signing some of the best players in the world.
In an interview with Piers Morgan, Ronaldo referred to Prince Mohammed as "our boss".
Earlier this month, he appeared at a Ministry of Tourism event in Riyadh where he talked up the kingdom's development projects and his hopes for the 2034 FIFA World Cup being held in Saudi Arabia.
Ronaldo's US troubles
It was a rare US visit for Ronaldo, who has not played in the country since 2014. It is believed he has not visited the country since that time either.
In 2017, German news magazine Der Spiegel reported that Ronaldo had paid $US375,000 in hush money to a woman who accused him of raping her at a Las Vegas hotel in 2009.
He denied the claims made by Kathryn Mayorga, saying in a statement made in 2018: "Rape is an abominable crime that goes against everything that I am and believe in."
In 2019, US prosecutors said Ronaldo would not face charges because the claims could not be proven.
ABC/Wires
