Saudi Pro League recruitment chief Michael Emenalo admits they're delighted Jordan Henderson has joined the competition.
The former Liverpool captain now leads Al-Ettifaq.
Emenalo told Sky Sports: "Well first, I am very proud of Jordan. I'm very proud that he chose, of his own volition, to express support and values that he shares. He shouldn't be vilified for that. I'm very proud that he is able to make a decision, professionally, that allows him and his family to continue to live the life that he wants to live.
"The Jordan Henderson I know hasn't changed, I met and had a conversation with him. He remains passionate about the game and about life, he remains passionate about his beliefs. I have nothing but the best wishes for him and I'm sure that he will help not only the league grow on the pitch, but also off of it with some of these issues. I have no doubt he will be a wonderful addition to our league."
The former Chelsea technical director also said, "There are players who have had that. There are players who have chosen to become activists - the great Muhammad Ali was one of them. There are athletes who have shown their support and their activism in a different way. People have their values, their personalities and their own ways, backgrounds and influences. That's what makes the world so wonderful.
"Now, we live in a world of easy access, technology and social media - and it's very easy to criticise and talk about people's actions and responsibilities. But these guys [the players who have joined Saudi Arabia] are exceptional professional, artists and they have a talent. They have honed skills over years and hours to be at the top.
"It's nothing to be ashamed of that they want to make decisions based on the areas where they have incredible expertise. It doesn't mean that they don't care or they have lost their values. But it means their focus is to be the best they can be in the short space of time they have to do their job and do it well."
Emenalo also discussed the SPL's spending and being able to attract some of the world's most exciting players.
He added: "Just like the bankers, journalists, lawyers and medical experts, footballers from other smaller countries that emigrated to the Premier League, or the ones who went to Serie A in the 1990s, the sensation of progress always starts with some sort of economic advantage. Also, we can reasonably deduce that whenever there is a high level of economic renumeration, it means the ambition is high and there will be work in other areas, the quality of the league will be great, infrastructures will be good and their families will be looked after.
"All those things go hand in hand. It's not 'let me go and take money and play in a mud pit and fight in the mud.' That's not what it is. There is an economic incentive, the thing that inspires most of the players is to do something really special and something unique. You have already heard from Cristiano Ronaldo: "I set this space." It's a form of a wave to himself to say: "I anticipated this to be great and I did something special." And others are inspired by that.""
