The agreement to build a theme complex near Paris inspired by Dragon Ball Z looks like an unexpected twist in the map of global tourism: a Japanese anime franchise, French land, and Saudi investments of six billion euros.
The project includes three amusement parks not far from Cergy-Pontoise, 30 kilometers northwest of the French capital, on the site of the former Mirapolis park. One of them will be dedicated to the manga universe, primarily Dragon Ball Z. The financing is undertaken by the Saudi company Qiddiya Investment Company, linked to the state investment fund. According to estimates from the Élysée Palace, the complex will create about 22 thousand jobs — comparable to Disneyland Paris.
The idea arose from a personal meeting: during Emmanuel Macron's visit to Saudi Arabia in 2025, the president and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman discovered a shared passion for Dragon Ball Z. This coincidence of tastes turned into a memorandum signed during the Saudi prince's visit to Paris on 23–24 August 2026. For Riyadh, the project fits into the Vision 2030 strategy — diversifying the economy through tourism and entertainment, already tested in Qiddiya City near the kingdom's capital.
France receives large-scale foreign investment at a time when the European entertainment market is seeking new growth points after the pandemic and competition with Asian and Middle Eastern hubs. Saudi Arabia, in turn, exports not only capital but also a cultural product, connecting anime with a European audience. Such alliances are changing the familiar geography of theme parks: previously such projects were associated with American or Japanese studios, now the initiative comes from a region traditionally linked to oil.
Construction will take several years; the exact opening date has not yet been announced. The site in Val-d'Oise is convenient in terms of transport accessibility — the RER A line runs nearby. However, success will depend not only on the recognizability of the franchise but also on how organically the anime theme can be integrated into the French landscape and the expectations of European visitors accustomed to Disneyland and Parc Astérix.
For travelers, this could mean the emergence of a new major magnet within an hour's drive from Paris, capable of redistributing tourist flows between the capital and its suburbs. In a broader sense, the project illustrates how the personal passions of leaders and the economic strategies of states shape future destinations for mass tourism.
