RIYADH: The Saudi Women’s Premier League returns to action on Friday Sept. 27 with a new campaign titled “#SeeUsPlay” aimed at inspiring young footballers.
There will be 90 matches over 18 weeks in the Saudi Arabian Football Federation’s Women’s Premier League, with over 200 players registered for the new season.
Over 15 international players have signed for 10 clubs in the SAFF’s league.
The influx of international talent is a testament to the growth of women’s football in the Kingdom, following on from the qualification of Al-Nassr for the preliminary stage of the AFC Women’s Champions League in August.
The “#SeeUsPlay” campaign is aimed at growing the game. There are already 77,000 female players in the nation’s school league.
The SAFF’s President Yasser Al-Misehal said: “We’re very proud of the growth of women’s football in Saudi Arabia and excited to see the return of the Women’s Premier League.”
He said the federation’s investment in women’s football has resulted in more registered players, football clubs, domestic competitions, national teams, licensed coaches, referees, and girls participating in the regional training centers and the school’s league.
“I congratulate our Women’s Football Department on this initiative, and wish the players, clubs and officials good luck and in the spirit of the campaign, encourage everyone across Saudi and beyond to ‘#SeeUsPlay.’
“We have so many historic clubs and passionate fans who support them but there is new history to write, and these players simply deserve your support. Everyone benefits from the noise and energy you will bring.”
The SAFF’s Head of Women’s Football Aalia Al-Rasheed added: “The development we have seen for the Saudi Women’s Premier League over the past two seasons has been remarkable, going from having no professional female players to now having over 20 nationalities competing here in Saudi Arabia.”
She added: “It has been an incredible experience to witness how this game is inspiring a new generation, with players who saw the formation of our national team in 2021 now joining the women’s professional league and professional women’s clubs now competing on the international stage.”
Al-Rasheed said she was proud of the growth of the game at grassroots level, and the interest from international players to join the league.
The development of Saudi Arabian football is in line with the nation’s “Growing Together” campaign and the nation’s Vision 2030 strategy to promote sports.
