[Exclusive] How many soccer fans have attended Asian Champions League matches in Saudi Arabia since 2006?

[2006-2024] Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Champions League (ACL) Elite Attendance – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)

Source [X (formerly Twitter)]: Alhilal_FC

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Al-Hilal

Al-Hilal are the most successful club in the history of the ACL Elite with four titles (1991, 1999/2000, 2019, and 2021)

Al-Hilal has earned USD 1.7 million [USD 1 million (Group Stage participation and Round of 16 qualification fee) + USD 700 thousand (Performance Bonus)] from 2024/25 ACL Elite Group Stage.

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Al-Ittihad

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Al-Ahli

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Al-Shabab

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Al-Nassr

Al-Nassr’s recent post for its 2024/25 ACL Elite match against Iranian opposition Persepolis was inspired by iconic scenes from legendary Iranian film director Abbas Kiarostami’s movies "Where Is The Friend's House?", "Through the Olive Trees”, and "Close-Up". Source (Instagram): alnassr

Al-Nassr has earned USD 1.5 million [USD 1 million (Group Stage participation and Round of 16 qualification fee) + USD 500 thousand (Performance bonus)] from 2024/25 ACL Elite Group Stage.

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Other Saudi Pro League (SPL) Clubs

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2024/25 ACL Elite (West Asia) Kit Suppliers and Front-of-Shirt Sponsors

• Adidas supplies 25% of ACL Elite (West Asia) club kits.

  • 👕Which sportswear brands are the biggest soccer kit suppliers in The Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf (GCC) region?

• 83% of ACL Elite (West Asia) clubs have a front-of-shirt sponsorship deal.

• All ACL Elite (West Asia) front-of-shirt sponsors are headquartered in the same country represented by their sponsored clubs in the tournament.

Activations and Products

noon X Saudi Pro League (SPL)

PRIME X FC Barcelona, Arsenal, Bayern Munich, and Erling Haaland

evian X Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships

stc enhanced the soccer experience for people of determination during the Spanish Super Cup in Jeddah by providing them with an interactive board featuring tactile indicators that tracked ball movement in real time. Comprehensive audio descriptions offered a live and detailed commentary of the matches (Source).

[Saudi Sports Company (SSC) Advertisement Packages] How much is a Saudi Pro League (SPL), ACL Elite, and NFL Super Bowl commercial?

ROSHN League = SPL. Source: SSC (2024)

Source: SSC (2024)

Source: SSC (2024)

Top of Mind

SPL Internationalization Recommendations

• Travel Package

  • Potential travel package for a SPL club (Al-Hilal)

    • Al-Malaki¹ (The Royal) Package

      • Guided soccer-themed walking tour of Riyadh including a tour of past and present Al-Hilal home stadiums (King Fahad International Stadium, Prince Faisal Bin Fahad Stadium, and Kingdom Arena)

      • Al-Hilal and Arab soccer masterclass with a soccer historian and expert over a cup of gahwa and dates

      • Fan chant and tifo workshops with “Blue Power” (Al-Hilal Ultras)

      • Riyadh derby (Al-Hilal vs Al-Nassr) matchday experience

      • Q&A session with Al-Hilal legends Sami Al-Jaber (retired player), Salem Al-Dawsari (captain and current player), and Yassine Bounou (current player)

      • Traditional majlis session with Al-Hilal legend Mohammed Al-Shalhoub (retired player and current coach)

      • Both Al-Hilal legend experiences include merchandise signing and trophy viewing sessions.

• Food and Beverage (F&B) Tour and Guide

  • Guided soccer-themed F&B walking tour showcasing the local dishes of each city represented by a SPL club

  • A soccer-themed F&B guide featuring SPL matchday stadium concessions

  • The above tour and guide could be scaled and replicated in other countries around the world with the support of Culinary Arts Commission [Ministry of Culture (KSA)].

  • [MSKhan Lab Recommendation] Potential localized menu of a similar nature for a SPL club [Al-Hilal (KSA)]

    [Mega Edition] 2024 Sports and Esports Seasons in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA)

• Merchandise Store

  • A centralized online SPL merchandise store featuring:

    • All clubs

    • Express worldwide shipping

    • Classic merchandise

      • Recommended reading

        • A Moment in Time, Preserved in Polyester [The New York Times (NYT), 2024]

          Vintage soccer jerseys have become a streetwear staple, and a target of major investors. Their real appeal lies in the memories they conjure.

        • The rise of the £900 football shirt [Financial Times (FT), 2024]

          The nostalgia for classic kits is on the up. So are the prices

  • SPL pop-up merchandise stores in superstar athlete markets (Brazil and Portugal) and key locations (Fifth Avenue NYC and Harrods London)

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Saudi Arabia Soccer Stadium Ticketing

Should Saudi Arabia’s under-construction soccer stadiums sell “Personal Seat Licenses (PSLs)”?

Personal Seat License, la fórmula ‘yankee’ de Barça y Real Madrid para hacer palanca del negocio VIP ²(Personal Seat License, the 'Yankee' formula of Barça and Real Madrid to leverage the VIP business)

Los blaugranas han vendido parte de estos palcos a fondos de Qatar y Emiratos por 100 millones, mientras que los blancos sacaron un extra de 75 millones. Esta fórmula la utilizaban equipos de las ligas estadounidenses para financiar sus nuevos estadios (The Blaugranas have sold part of these boxes to funds from Qatar and the Emirates for 100 million, while the Whites generated an extra 75 million. This formula was used by teams in the U.S. leagues to finance their new stadiums).

KSA Soccer Ticketing Update

• The minimum ticket price of the King’s Cup quarter-final match between Al-Taawoun and Al-Qadsiah was only SAR 5 (USD 1.3)!

• The minimum ticket price of Al-Ittihad’s SPL clash with Al-Hilal has remained unchanged since the last season while the maximum ticket price has increased.

  [Mini Ticket Guide] How much does it cost to watch a football match in West Asia?

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DAZN MENA

Saudi Arabia strikes $1bn deal with Leonard Blavatnik’s sports streaming business (FT, 2025)

Surj Sports Investment will take less than 5% stake in DAZN and help fund a Middle East broadcasting joint venture (DAZN MENA)

• Will DAZN MENA finally break beIN Sports’ Middle East and North Africa (MENA) hegemony?

• Will DAZN strike a Apple-MLS-type deal for SPL broadcasting rights, given the SPL broadcasting rights are up for renewal soon?

• Will DAZN MENA merge with SSC to form a MENA sports media powerhouse, given the “M&A synergies”?

• Will DAZN MENA float on Tadawul? Or Tadawul and London Stock Exchange (dual-listing)?

LinkedIn Posts

1. 🏆Tonight, the men's national soccer team of Bahrain meets Oman in the 26th Arab Gulf Cup (Khaleeji Zain 26) final at Jaber Al-Ahmad Stadium in Kuwait.

2. ⚽Soccer Anime and Manga in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region

3. 🚛Dakar Rally 2025

4. NADEC X Al-Hilal

   snackinginsaudi

   

   A post shared by @snackinginsaudi

5. Red Bull MOBILE X Al-Hilal

   alhilal

   

   A post shared by @alhilal

Appendix

ACL Elite

• Stage

  • G = Group Stage

  • R16 = Round of 16

  • QF = Quarter-Final

  • SF = Semi-Final

  • F = Final

• The 2020, 2021, and 2022 editions were not considered for analysis as the matches were played in centralized venues due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

• All home-and-away matches between Iranian and Saudi Arabian clubs were played on neutral grounds for seven years (2016-2023) due to political reasons.

• The horizontal axis (x-axis = AFC Champions League Season) of the chart represents the seasons a club qualified for the tournament.

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

2023

1. Al-Hilal’s nickname.

2. Translated from Spanish to English using ChatGPT.