Saudi football top-flights ink Qiddiya deal

Article posted by Coliseum, February 25^th, 2022

Image: Al Hilal, Al-Nassr & Qiddiya

The Saudi Arabian football clubs Al-Nassr FC and Al Hilal SFC signed one of the region’s largest strategic partnerships valued at SAR100 million per club annually with giga project Qiddiya recently.

‘Tim Brouw, Project Executive, Qiddiya Sports City, posted on LinkedIn’ that the 20-year partnership will run from 2022 to 2042 and will be subject to review every five years.

The Al-Nassr Football Club is a Saudi Arabian football club based in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). Formed in 1955, the club plays its home games at the 25,000-capacity Mrsool Park. Their home colors are yellow and blue.

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The Al Hilal Saudi Football Club, or simply Al Hilal, is a professional multisport club based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The football team competes in the Saudi Professional League and play their home games at the 67,000-capacity King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh.

Qiddiya is an entertainment mega project to be established in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia). Construction started in the beginning of 2019. The project is one of the tourism megaprojects to be established in Saudi Arabia in the framework of the Saudi Vision 2030 which aims to diversify the income resources of the country.

The Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) is driving the development of Qiddiya (sits on the doorstep of Riyadh) – Saudi Arabia’s capital of entertainment, sports and the arts. Qiddiya will also include a variety of real estate options and community services.

Qiddiya’s planned clifftop 40,000+ seat stadium, once complete, will eventually become the new venue for home games for both the above teams and the full range of sporting facilities being developed will be made available for both clubs.

The ‘LinkedIn Post’ further stated that the stadium is a flagship element of Qiddiya’s strategy to become a global center of sporting excellence and its complex will include corporate hospitality lounges and VIP and VVIPs seats. Sports fans will be able to enjoy and savor the amazing view of Qiddiya’s Resort Core from every seat to complement the quality on field action.

The pioneering agreements were formally signed between Qiddiya’s Managing Director, Abdullah bin Nasser Aldawood and Al-Nassr FC’s Chairman, Musalli AlMuammar and Al Hilal SFC’s Chairman, Fahad bin Nafal, at a ceremony held at the Qiddiya Experience Center. Senior officials from these two giants of Saudi football also attended the ceremony.

Commenting on the partnership, Aldawood said, “This strategic partnership is in line with Qiddiya’s strategy to contribute to the development of the wider sports industry in Saudi Arabia and is another important step towards our aim of building and developing Qiddiya as a formidable sports hub that is the home of local, regional and international competitions. There will be numerous benefits for the club including the use of our state-of-the-art facilities to train and become world champions across a wide range of sports in addition to football.”

Added Aldawood, “Both Al-Nassr and Al Hilal are set to play their home games at Qiddiya’s world-class venues, including the incredible new clifftop stadium, once construction is complete. The clubs’ fans will gain an entirely new experience as they will have access to the entertainment and sports facilities and venues around the stadium. They will be inspired to pursue their own sporting dreams which will ultimately boost the sports industry’s contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).”

Qiddiya’s offering will be based on five cornerstones: Parks and Attractions, Sports and Wellness, Arts and Culture, Motion and Mobility, and Nature and Environment, along with a variety of real estate options and community services. The stadium will be a key attraction of the Sports and Wellness cornerstone.

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