Saudi football is growing stronger — and so are its foundations

The football season is over. The transfer window is open. Coaches are being appointed. Attention is turning to the FIFA World Cup 2026, before it shifts back to the Saudi Super Cup and the next Saudi Pro League season. That can make this feel like a quiet moment in Saudi football. It is not. Some of the most important developments affecting the game’s long-term health are happening now.

That is why the latest announcement on club privatization matters. Attention naturally follows matches, transfers and tournament storylines. But the strength of football is shaped just as much by what happens between them. With a new group of clubs now entering the next phase of privatization, Saudi football is making long-term decisions about how clubs will be owned, run and developed in the years ahead.

The biggest progress is not always the easiest to see. It does not live only in a transfer, a result or a headline. It lives in the foundations beneath the game. Saudi football is building stronger institutions and the next phase of its development is building on that progress.

Vision 2030 expects more from the sector. It expects clubs that can compete but also clubs that are well governed, sustainable and built to last. That matters for supporters, for investors and for the wider sports economy. For fans, it means clubs with a better chance of growing responsibly and competing sustainably. For investors, it means a market that is becoming clearer, more disciplined and more transparent. For Saudi sport as a whole, it means a stronger and more resilient football economy.

Saudi football is making long-term decisions about how clubs will be owned, run and developed in the years ahead

Bader Alkadi

The latest announcement deserves attention for exactly that reason. The Ministry of Sport has now confirmed the next group of clubs that will enter the privatization process: Al-Fateh, Al-Riyadh, Abha, Al-Shoulla and Al-Tai. The process is expected to take about eight to 10 months, with completion targeted between the first and second quarters of 2027. That may look like timing and process. In fact, it reflects deliberate decisions about scarce assets and long-term value. This is not a one-off exercise. It is the continued building of a more mature and disciplined football market.

The scale of that pathway is already significant. More than 80 expressions of interest have been received from local and international investors across more than 20 clubs. Al-Okhdood and Al-Najmah are already in the current process. Other clubs have completed privatization. What this shows is not simply demand. It shows that Saudi football is developing a repeatable model: one based on readiness, fit and long-term capability, not speed alone.

This is also visible in how the game is being organized. The next phase of the Saudi Pro League’s Player Acquisition Centre of Excellence framework applies a transparent four-year model across all 18 clubs. It distributes 22 percent of the budget equally, 22 percent by average league position, 28 percent by television viewership and 28 percent by commercial performance. The principle is straightforward: when the league grows, clubs should benefit through a system that rewards both competitiveness and commercial development.

The wider indicators point in the same direction. Since 2023, total commercial revenues have risen by more than 350 percent and central commercial revenues by more than 115 percent. The latest figures reinforce that trajectory. Sponsorship revenues reached SR250 million ($66 million) in the 2024-25 season. Total league market value rose to SR4.8 billion by 2025. The average market value of Saudi Pro League squads also increased by 10 percent to SR238 million. Those numbers matter because they reflect a market that is becoming more mature, more investable and more capable of sustaining growth.

The growth of football also sits within a wider national shift. About 80 percent of Saudis are interested in football. Sports participation has risen from 13 percent in 2015 to 59 percent today. Licensed private sports facilities have grown from about 800 in 2015 to more than 4,300. These are not separate stories. They are part of the same story: a sports sector expanding in reach, confidence and economic weight.

This is why Saudi football should not be reduced to star signings alone. Those signings bring attention and attention has value. But attention is not transformation. The deeper work is harder and more important. It is about cleaning up liabilities, building stronger operating models, improving financial planning and giving clubs the structure they need to grow well.

This is a market that is becoming more mature, more investable and more capable of sustaining growth

Bader Alkadi

And that progress can be seen beyond the biggest clubs. The case for privatization does not depend on one club or one ownership model. It is visible across the football landscape: in stronger attendance, fan engagement and sponsorship growth at the Ar Rass-based Al-Kholood, which last month played in a King’s Cup final for the first time; in Madinah, where Al-Ansar’s youth pathway and under-21 success reflect a more deliberate approach to long-term development; and in clubs such as Al-Qadsiah, where stronger structures have helped turn promotion into immediate top-level competitiveness. The point is not that every club now looks the same. It is that, across different regions, levels and budgets, better structures are beginning to deliver better outcomes.

Privatization has a clear role in this process. But it should be understood properly. Saudi Arabia is not pursuing privatization simply to attract capital. Capital matters but it is not enough on its own. The real goal is to bring in the right expertise, the right operational discipline and the right long-term capability. This is partnership, not just transaction.

There is another reason the process matters. Football clubs are not ordinary assets. They carry history, identity and community meaning. They belong to places and to people. That is why privatization should never be rushed. The fact that this next wave is being phased, assessed and scheduled over time is not hesitation. It is a sign that the process is being taken seriously. A deliberate pace is not a weakness. It is how stronger outcomes are built.

That matters internationally as much as it does at home. Global investors want opportunity but they also want clarity. Fans want ambition but they also want continuity and trust. The right model must do both. It must create room for investment, expertise and growth, while protecting the integrity of clubs and the communities behind them.

This is what the latest announcement really shows. Saudi football is moving from momentum to structure. From excitement to systems. From isolated examples to a model that can be repeated and strengthened over time. The work is not finished. But the direction is clear.

Football, at its best, rewards those who plan as well as those who play. Saudi football is doing both.

• Bader Alkadi is Vice Minister of Sport for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.