A $7 billion theme park project inspired by the world of Dragon Ball is being planned near Paris as part of a major investment partnership between France and Saudi Arabia.
The two countries have agreed on a €6 billion ($7 billion) project to develop three large theme parks near Cergy-Pontoise, about 30 kilometres northwest of Paris. One of the parks is expected to be dedicated to the hugely popular Dragon Ball franchise.
The development will be led by Qiddiya Investment Company, which is backed by Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund. The project is expected to create around 22,000 jobs and will be developed in stages over several years. However, no official opening date has been announced yet.
The other two parks have not yet been publicly given specific themes. The idea reportedly grew from a shared interest in Japanese manga between French President Emmanuel Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
During Macron’s visit to Riyadh in 2024, the two reportedly discovered their mutual enthusiasm for manga, particularly Dragon Ball. That shared interest eventually became part of discussions surrounding the massive French-Saudi entertainment investment.
Macron later described the project as an extraordinary investment that could create a new major entertainment destination in France.
Despite the excitement surrounding the announcement, the Dragon Ball theme itself still faces a licensing hurdle.
Reports say the Japanese rights holders have not yet formally approved the use of Dragon Ball characters and branding for the proposed French park. Several companies and rights holders are involved in the franchise’s intellectual property.
So while the wider three-park project has been agreed upon, the final Dragon Ball branding and attractions still depend on securing the necessary rights.
If the licensing deal goes through, Europe could eventually get a huge Dragon Ball-themed attraction featuring the world of Goku, Vegeta, Shenron and the Z Fighters. And this isn’t Saudi Arabia’s first major Dragon Ball project. Qiddiya is already developing a separate Dragon Ball theme park near Riyadh, making the proposed French project part of a much larger push into anime-inspired entertainment.
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