Latest news with #SaudiArabianFootballFederation
Arab Times
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Arab Times
Saudi Crown Prince meets Al-Ahli after AFC Champions League win
RIYADH, May 13: Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received, in Jeddah, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Minister of Sports and President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee; Yasser Al-Misehal, President of the Saudi Arabian Football Federation; Khalid Al-Ghamdi, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Al-Ahli Club along with members of the technical and administrative staff and players of the football team. The meeting was held in celebration of Al-Ahli Club's triumph in the 2025 AFC Champions League. The Crown Prince congratulated the club's officials and players on this significant national accomplishment and praised their exceptional performance, which reflects the remarkable progress of the Kingdom's sports sector. He emphasized the importance of maintaining this momentum and continuing to work hard to elevate Saudi Arabia's presence and reputation on the global stage.
Saudi Gazette
12-05-2025
- Sport
- Saudi Gazette
Crown Prince receives Al-Ahli football team and Paralympic gold medalist Al-Qurashi
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman received Al-Ahli players following their 2025 AFC Champions League Elite triumph, and Paralympic gold medalist Abdulrahman Al-Qurashi, in recognition of their outstanding achievements that highlight the Kingdom's rising global stature in sports. Prince Mohammed received on Sunday Minister of Sport and President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal, Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) President Yasser Almisehal, Al-Ahli Saudi Club Chairman Khalid Al-Issa, along with the club's staff and players, on the occasion of their victory in the 2025 AFC Champions League Elite. The Crown Prince congratulated the officials and players of Al-Ahli on their historic achievement and outstanding performance, describing it as a reflection of the remarkable progress of Saudi Arabia's sports sector. He emphasized the importance of maintaining excellence and continuing efforts to elevate the Kingdom's presence on the global sports stage. In a separate meeting in Jeddah, Prince Mohammed also received Saudi national Paralympic athlete Abdulrahman Al-Qurashi to celebrate his gold medal victory at the Paris Paralympic Games. The Crown Prince commended Al-Qurashi's exceptional accomplishment, noting that such successes serve as inspiration for all Saudi athletes, men and women alike, to pursue excellence and proudly raise the Kingdom's flag at international competitions. Al-Qurashi expressed his gratitude to the Crown Prince, calling the reception a great honor and a reflection of the leadership's continued support for Saudi athletes. The athlete had previously secured a bronze medal at the Tokyo Paralympic Games. The reception was attended by Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki bin Faisal bin Abdulaziz, Minister of Sport and President of the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee.
The Guardian
09-05-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Why is Saudi Arabia at the Gold Cup? It's the latest in the Kingdom's soft power campaign
Last month, the Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) held an official draw in Miami, Florida for the 2025 Gold Cup, the premier biennial tournament for men's football on the continent. This summer, the Gold Cup will serve as the crucial litmus test for the US national team ahead of the 2026 World Cup, the vast majority of which will take place on home soil. The draw placed the Americans in Group D, alongside Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago … and Saudi Arabia. Why is a Middle Eastern country on the Asian continent in a regional competition half a world away? The answer lies in some of the strange twists that world football tends to take. The Kingdom is Concacaf's official 'invited guest' of the tournament, continuing a tradition that started early in the tournament's founding, during which time the likes of Brazil, South Korea, and South Africa were among the guest nations to take part. The practice was abandoned in the early-00's, but was restarted in the 2021 edition when Qatar, another authoritarian gulf state, was invited to take part the year before the nation hosted the World Cup. They returned for the 2023 edition, as well. Concacaf announced Saudi Arabia as the guest participant just eight days after the Kingdom secured the 2034 World Cup in December 2024. 'We are very pleased that through our relationship with the Asian Football Confederation we have been able to collaborate with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and their President Yasser Al-Misehal, both on and off the pitch,' Concacaf president Victor Montagliani said in the official press release. 'We look forward to welcoming one of Asia's top men's national teams to compete with the best in Concacaf.' The top three teams in the Gold Cup – the US, Canada, and Mexico – are already qualified for the 2026 FIFA World Cup as co-hosts. What they needed were serious opponents in a competitive setting. Instead, they got Saudi Arabia–a team currently struggling in its own World Cup qualification campaign – granted a spot not on merit, but seemingly in exchange for a hefty financial contribution to Concacaf. Excluded from the press release announcing Saudi Arabia's Gold Cup participation is Concacaf's partnership with Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) – the state-owned sovereign wealth fund chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The injection of funds from the PIF is expected to boost soccer development in the region, with more tournaments for men, women, and youth participants. 'Together, we will advance a series of initiatives to create a positive and lasting impact across all Concacaf competitions,' Mohammed AlSayyad, head of corporate brand at PIF, said at the time. It's not the first and will hardly be the Saudi regime's last effort to turn the entire world of sports to its advantage. Over the past few years, the PIF has reshaped global sports through aggressive investments and strategic acquisitions aimed at bolstering the kingdom's global influence and soft power. From acquiring top-tier soccer clubs like Newcastle United to ambitious plans in boxing, golf, and esports, the PIF has enabled the Saudi regime to exploit sports as a diplomatic and economic tool, while raising concerns about conflicts of interest, governance, and the growing authoritarian grip on world sports. Concacaf's deal with PIF notably comes after the confederation designated Aramco, the Saudi state-run oil company, as the 'official energy partner' for all of CONCACAF's national team and club competitions. The confederation then announced that Riyadh Air would be the 'official airline partner' in a multi-year deal. The PIF-owned airline, which is also a shirt sponsor of La Liga side Atlético Madrid, is yet to officially launch. The U.S. government has also shown concerns for the PIF's dealings in the United States. Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), the ranking member of the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations, has been investigating how the Saudi state is using its sovereign wealth fund to buy influence in the US, including its ongoing bid to create a merger between the Saudi-owned LIV Golf league and the PGA Tour. In an attempt to hinder the investigation, however, the PIF has filed lawsuits in Saudi Arabia seeking to block four PIF consultants, Boston Consulting Group, McKinsey & Company, M. Klein & Company, and Teneo–all headquartered in the United States–from responding to subpoenas issued by the subcommittee. In April, Blumenthal released a new report on his findings into the 2023 framework agreement between the PGA Tour and the PIF, alleging that the PIF only tried to negotiate with the PGA Tour in order to avoid discovery. 'Our report reveals how present laws may enable foreign influence without transparency,' Bluemnthal said. 'Very simply, our present defenses do not protect against increasingly sophisticated threats.' Blumenthal's report lands as the Trump administration actively undermines the US government's capacity to combat foreign influence, scaling back enforcement of things like the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA) and hollowing out the very departments tasked with investigating foreign influence efforts. It's a vulnerability the Saudi government is well positioned to exploit, particularly through PIF's expanding footprint in global sports. By weaponizing sports as part of its national strategy, the Kingdom is deepening its influence in North America, bolstering its global image ahead of the 2034 World Cup, and dismantling scrutiny over its human rights record, one critic at a time – the soft power equivalent of a perfectly timed goal. Saudi Arabia's participation in the Gold Cup isn't just about football. It's a calculated strategy rooted in geopolitical maneuvering and influence management. The Gold Cup is merely the latest arena in which the Kingdom is flexing its growing influence. Karim Zidan writes a regular newsletter on the intersection of sports and authoritarian politics.
Saudi Gazette
12-04-2025
- Sport
- Saudi Gazette
Saudi Arabia drawn with USA, Haiti and Trinidad in 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup group
Saudi Gazette report MIAMI — The Saudi Arabian national team has been drawn into Group D of the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, alongside hosts United States, Haiti, and Trinidad and Tobago, following the official draw held in Miami. The tournament — the 18th edition of the Gold Cup — will take place from June 14 to July 6, 2025, across 14 stadiums in 11 cities in the United States and Canada. The final will be played at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas, marking the first time the Gold Cup final will be held in the state. Saudi Arabia, one of the invited guest teams, will be making its first appearance in the Gold Cup after confirming participation in both the 2025 and 2027 editions, as announced by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation last December. The Green Falcons' participation is part of broader efforts to develop the national team ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, which will also be held in North America — jointly hosted by the USA, Canada, and Cup 2025 group stage draw:- Group A: Mexico, Costa Rica, Suriname, Dominican Republic- Group B: Canada, Honduras, El Salvador, Curaçao- Group C: Panama, Jamaica, Guatemala, Guadeloupe- Group D: USA, Haiti, Trinidad and Tobago, Saudi ArabiaThe group stage will run from June 14 to June 24, with the top two teams from each group (eight teams total) advancing to the knockout phase, which kicks off with the quarter-finals on June 28-29, followed by the semi-finals on July 2, and the final on Sunday, July Arabia joins a list of non-CONCACAF nations previously invited to the tournament, such as Brazil, South Korea, South Africa, and Qatar, the latter of whom reached the semi-finals in 2021 and the round of 16 in Gold Cup is the premier international tournament for national teams from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean, organized by CONCACAF. First held in 1963, it has grown significantly in stature and global appeal.
Saudi Gazette
06-04-2025
- Sport
- Saudi Gazette
Saudi assistant referee Iman Al Madani joins AFC elite list for 2025
Saudi Gazette report RIYADH — The Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) has announced that assistant referee Iman Al Madani has officially been added to the Asian Football Confederation's elite list of assistant referees for 2025. SAFF President Yasser Al Misehal extended his congratulations to Al Madani for earning her place among the continent's top officials, joining a growing list of elite Saudi referees who continue to represent the Kingdom in major regional and international tournaments. Al Misehal praised her achievement and emphasized the federation's ongoing efforts to elevate the standard of Saudi refereeing. 'We are proud of Iman's progress and commitment, and we wish her and her fellow Saudi referees continued success in presenting a strong image of Saudi officiating at the Asian and global levels,' he said. The federation reaffirmed its commitment to developing local referees through training, international exposure, and performance-driven programs that have seen Saudi officials feature prominently across AFC and FIFA competitions in recent years.
