Football in Saudi Arabia

Football in Saudi Arabia
Football is the most popular sport in Saudi Arabia. Football in Saudi Arabia is governed by the Saudi Arabia Football Federation (SAFF). It was founded in 1956. It administers both the club competitions and the national football teams of Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi Arabia Football Federation founder is Prince Abdullah bin Faisal al Saud.
History
National football team
The Saudi Arabia national football team, is nicknamed as Al-Saqour, which means The Falcons. They are one of the most successful football teams in Asia, winning the Asian Championship three times and qualified to the World Cup six times (1994, 1998, 2002, 2006, 2018, and 2022).
Rivalries
Saudi Arabia has a major rivalry with Iran.
League
The Saudi Professional League is the highest level of competition in the country. In the 1970s, football was organized on a regional basis across Saudi Arabia.
In the 1976 Saudi Professional League season, with the improvement of transportation links and local football, the league was launched on a national basis. Eight clubs participated in the first season of the tournament.
In 1981, a decision was made by the Saudi Arabia Football Federation to increase the number of clubs to 18 clubs, 8 of which take part in the first league, with the other 10 competing in the second league.
In the 1985 season, the number of clubs in the first league was increased to 12.
In 1990, a league cup was introduced, known as The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques League Cup. It was a two-stage competition, a round-robin and knockout phase. The top four teams (known as the Golden Square) from the round-robin moved to the knock-out phase to compete for the final championship.
In the 2007–08 season, The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Champions Cup was introduced for the more elite teams to compete for. Eight teams participate, including the top six teams of the first league, the winner of the Crown Prince Cup, and the Prince Faisal Cup.
Since 2023, the league started growing through the investment of the Public Investment Fund, mainly in association football.
Events hosted
1972 Arabian Gulf Cup
1984 Arab Club Champions Cup
1985 Afro-Asian Cup of Nations
1985 Arab Cup
1985–86 Asian Club Championship
1986 AFC Youth Championship
1986 Asian Club Championship
1987 Arab Club Champions Cup
1988 Arabian Gulf Cup
1989 Arab Cup Winners' Cup
1989 FIFA World Youth Championship
1992 AFC U-17 Championship
1992 FIFA Confederations Cup
1995 Arab Super Cup
1995 FIFA Confederations Cup
1996 Arab Super Cup
1997 Asian Super Cup
1997 FIFA Confederations Cup
1998 Arab Club Champions Cup
1998 Asian Super Cup
1999 Asian Super Cup
2000 Arab Club Champions Cup
2000 Arab Cup Winners' Cup
2000 Asian Super Cup
2001 Asian Super Cup
2002 Arab Unified Club Championship
2002 Arabian Gulf Cup
2002 Asian Super Cup
2005 Islamic Solidarity Games
2008 AFC U-19 Championship
2008 GCC U-23 Championship
2011 Arab Cup U-17
2012 Arab Cup
2014 AFC Champions League Final
2014 Arabian Gulf Cup
2017 AFC Champions League Final
2018 Supercoppa Italiana
2019 AFC Champions League Final
2019 Supercoppa Italiana
2019–20 Supercopa de España
2020 Arab Cup U-20
2021 AFC Champions League Final
2021 WAFF U-15 Championship
2021 WAFF U-23 Championship
2021–22 Supercopa de España
2022 Arab Cup U-20
2022 Supercoppa Italiana
2022 WAFF U-23 Championship
2022–23 Supercopa de España
2027 AFC Asian Cup
National team
National ranking
, Saudi Arabia is placed 54th in the FIFA World Rankings.
Achievements
1970 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1972 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
1973 AFC Youth Championship – Fourth place
1974 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
1976 Pan Arab Games – Silver
1979 Arabian Gulf Cup — Third place
1982 Asian Games – Bronze
1984 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1984 AFC Asian Cup – Champion
1985 Arab Cup – Third place
1985 Pan Arab Games – Fourth place
1985 Afro-Asian Cup of Nations – Runner-up
1985 AFC Youth Championship – Runner-up
1985 AFC U-16 Championship – Champion
1986 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1986 Asian Games – Silver
1986 AFC Youth Championship – Champion
1986 AFC U-16 Championship – Third place
1988 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1988 AFC Asian Cup – Champion
1988 AFC U-16 Championship – Champion
1989 FIFA U-16 World Championship – Champion
1992 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1992 AFC Asian Cup – Runner-up
1992 FIFA Confederations Cup – Runner-up
1992 Arab Cup – Runner-up
1992 AFC Youth Championship – Champion
1992 AFC U-17 Championship – Third place
1994 Arabian Gulf Cup – Champion
1996 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
1996 AFC Asian Cup – Champion
1997 Afro-Asian Cup of Nations – Runner-up
1998 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
1998 Arab Cup – Champion
1998 AFC Youth Championship – Third place
1999 FIFA Confederations Cup – Fourth place
2000 AFC Asian Cup – Runner-up
2002 Arabian Gulf Cup – Champion
2002 Arab Cup – Champion
2002 AFC Youth Championship – Third place
2003‒04 Arabian Gulf Cup – Champion
2005 Islamic Solidarity Games – Gold
2007 Arabian Gulf Cup – Third place
2007 AFC Asian Cup – Runner-up
2007 Pan Arab Games – Bronze
2008 GCC U-23 Championship – Champion
2009 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
2010 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
2010 AFC U-19 Championship – Fourth place
2011 GCC U-23 Championship – Third place
2011 Arab Cup U-20 – Runner-up
2011 Arab Cup U-17 – Champion
2012 Arab Cup U-20 – Runner-up
2012 Arab Cup – Fourth place
2012 GCC U-23 Championship – Champion
2013 AFC U-22 Championship – Runner-up
2013 GCC U-23 Championship – Runner-up
2013 Islamic Solidarity Games – Fourth place
2014 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
2014 Arab Cup U-17 – Runner-up
2015 GCC U-23 Championship – Champion
2015 GCC U-19 Championship – Fourth place
2016 GCC U-23 Championship – Champion
2016 AFC U-19 Championship – Runner-up
2016 GCC U-19 Championship – Champion
2018 AFC U-19 Championship – Champion
2019 Arabian Gulf Cup – Runner-up
2020 AFC U-23 Championship – Runner-up
2021 Arab Cup U-20 – Champion
2021 Islamic Solidarity Games – Runner-up
2022 AFC U-23 Asian Cup – Champion
2022 Arab Cup U-20 – Champion
2022 WAFF U-23 Championship – Champion
Leagues of Saudi Arabia
There are four professional football league levels of Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Professional League – 16 clubs
First Division – 20 clubs
Second Division – 28 clubs
Third Division – 32 clubs
The Saudi Professional League was ranked 27th in 2015 by the International Federation of Football.
List of Saudi Pro League champions
Performance by club
Stadiums
Al-Batin Club Stadium
Al-Bukiryah Club Stadium
Al-Hazem Club Stadium
Al Majma'ah Sports City
Al-Najma Club Stadium
Al-Okhdood Club Stadium
Al-Shoulla Club Stadium
Department of Education Stadium
King Abdul Aziz Stadium
King Abdullah Sport City Stadium
King Abdullah Sports City
King Fahd International Stadium
King Fahd Stadium
King Khalid Sport City Stadium
King Saud Sport City Stadium
Mrsool Park
Prince Abdul Aziz bin Musa'ed Stadium
Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium
Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium
Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium
Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium
Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz Stadium
Prince Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium
Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium
Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz Stadium
Prince Turki bin Abdul Aziz Stadium
Best Player of Asia award
League system
The Saudi Arabia football association football league system is organized in a pyramidal shape similar to football league systems in many other countries. The principle of promotion and relegation binds the leagues.
Women's football
Women's football is played in Saudi Arabia, but only in the affluent areas, as the country's very restrictive laws (especially those concerning women) inhibit the practice of the sport. In February 2020, Saudi Arabia launched a football league for women.
Saudi Arabia football privatization
In November 2016, the government of Saudi Arabia approved plans to turn state-owned sports clubs into private companies. This is part of the economic reforms to reduce Saudi reliance on oil exports and ease financial burdens on the government.
See also
List of football clubs in Saudi Arabia
References