Saudi Women's Premier League

Saudi Women's Premier League
Organising bodySaudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF)
Founded2022; 3 years ago (2022)
CountrySaudi Arabia
ConfederationAFC
Number of clubs10 (since 2024–25)
Level on pyramid1
Relegation toSaudi Women's First Division League
Domestic cup(s)SAFF Women's Cup
Saudi Women's Super Cup
International cup(s)AFC Women's Champions League
WAFF Women's Clubs Championship
Current championsAl-Nassr (2nd title)
(2023–24)
Most championshipsAl-Nassr (2 titles)
Top goalscorerIraq Shokhan Salihi (57 Goals)
(as of January 12, 2025)
TV partnersSSC
Shahid (Streaming)
DAZN (outside MENA) Grass Valley
Websitesaff.com.sa
Current: 2024–25 Saudi Women's Premier League

The Saudi Women's Premier League (Arabic: الدوري السعودي الممتاز للسيدات) is the top flight of women's association football in Saudi Arabia.[1]

History

Logo of the league until 2022

The first Saudi women's club were King's United based in Jeddah,[2] and Eastern Flames in Dhahran. Both were formed in 2006. Other women's teams were formed after in Riyadh and Dammam. In 2008, the first Saudi women's tournament was held with the participation of seven teams. In December 2019, the Jeddah Women's Football League was held, which was the first women's competition organized by the Saudi Arabian Football Federation; it was won by Jeddah Eagles.[3]

In February 2020, Saudi Arabia decided to launch a football league[4] for women throughout the country.[5] On 17 November 2020, the national league was launched with 24 teams; it was divided into three regions, Jeddah, Riyadh and Dammam which represent the Women's Community Football League, and the four best teams qualified to the WFL Champions Cup.[6] Challenge Sports Club won the first edition.[7]

In October 2023, the Saudi Women's Premier League partnered with DAZN, giving them rights to stream the league's matches worldwide.[8] This move reflects the league's major advancements in recent years.

On 14 December 2023, the match between Al-Ahli and Al-Ittihad witnessed the presence of FIFA President Gianni Infantino at Prince Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium in Jeddah.[9]

On 23 December 2023, the match between Al-Ittihad and Al-Nassr witnessed the presence of The Best FIFA Women's Player 2021 and 2022, Spain's Alexia Putellas, at Prince Faisal Bin Fahad stadium (Al-Ittihad Club Stadium) in Jeddah.[10]

In May 2024, Grass Valley announced a cooperation agreement with Saudi Pro League to distribute the 2024–25 Saudi Women's Premier League matches through its digital platform.[11]

On 31 May 2024, the Saudi Football Federation renewed the exclusive partnership agreement with Saudi National Bank for a period of 3 years to sponsor the Saudi Women's Premier League and also the SAFF Women's Cup.[12]

On 10 January 2025, the match between Al-Ahli and Al-Amal witnessed the presence of 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup Champion, Spanish Coach Jorge Vilda, at Prince Mohammed bin Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium in Jeddah.[13]

Current teams

The following ten teams are competing in the 2024–25 season.

Team Location Ground Capacity 2023-24 Season
Al-Ahli Jeddah Al-Ahli Club Stadium 14,000 2nd
Al-Amal Taif King Fahd Sports City 20,000 D1, 3rd
Al-Hilal Riyadh Inaya Medical Colleges Stadium 10,000 5th
Al-Ittihad Jeddah Al-Ittihad Club Stadium 15,000 6th
Al-Nassr Riyadh Al-Awwal Park 25,000 1st
Al-Qadsiah Khobar Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium 15,000 4th
Al-Shabab Riyadh Al-Shabab Club Stadium 15,000 3rd
Al-Taraji Qatif Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Stadium 12,000 D1, 2nd
Al-Ula Medina Prince Mohammed Bin Abdulaziz Sports City 20,000 D1, 1st
Eastern Flames Dammam Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium 26,000 7th

Champions

By season

Season Winners Runners-up Third place Top goalscorer Best goalkeeper Best player Ref
Player(s) Goals
2022–23 Al-Nassr Al-Hilal Al-Shabab Iraq Shokhan Salihi (Al-Hilal)
43
 Saudi Arabia Laila Al-Qahtani (Al-Yamamah) Saudi Arabia Mubarkh Al-Saiari (Al-Nassr)
[14]
2023–24 Al-Nassr Al-Ahli Al-Shabab Morocco Ibtissam Jraïdi (Al-Ahli)
17
 United States Lindsey Harris (Al-Qadsiah) Algeria Lina Boussaha (Al-Nassr)
[15]
2024–25

By team

Club Winners Runners-up Years won Years runners-up
Al-Nassr
2
0
 2022–23, 2023–24
Al-Ahli
0
1
 2023–24
Al-Hilal
0
1
 2022–23

Records

All-time table

As of the 10th round of the 2024–25 Saudi Women's Premier League
Rank Team Part. Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Al-Nassr 3 38 33 3 2 152 41 +111 102
2 Al-Shabab 3 38 22 6 10 122 58 +64 72
3 Al-Hilal 3 38 21 6 11 131 58 +73 69
4 Al-Ahli 3 38 21 5 12 121 65 +56 68
5 Al-Ittihad 3 38 16 8 14 99 58 +41 56
6 Al-Qadsiah 2 24 11 8 5 46 22 +24 41
– Al-Yamamah 1 14 6 3 5 40 15 +25 21
7 Eastern Flames 3 38 5 4 29 51 122 −71 19
8 Al-Ula 1 10 4 0 6 17 21 -4 12
9 Al-Amal 1 10 1 0 9 13 34 −21 3
10 Al-Riyadh 1 14 0 1 13 8 79 −71 1
11 Al-Taraji 1 10 0 0 10 6 61 −55 0
12 Al-Bayraq 1 14 0 0 14 1 173 −172 0

Top scorers

As of the 10th round of the 2024–25 Saudi Women's Premier League
Rank Player Goals
1 Iraq Shokhan Salihi 56
2 Morocco Ibtissam Jraïdi 49
3 Algeria Lina Boussaha 25
4 Democratic Republic of the Congo Naomie Kabakaba 23
5 Cameroon Ajara Nchout 20
6 Tanzania Clara Luvanga 16
7 Saudi Arabia Al Bandary Mobarak 15
Bahrain Hessa Al-Isa
Egypt Menna Tarek
10 Ghana Mavis Owusu 14
Jordan Maysa Jbarah
Venezuela Oriana Altuve
12 Brazil Letícia Nunes 12
Ghana Elizabeth Addo
Saudi Arabia Daliah Abu Laban
Tunisia Samia Aouni

Sponsorship

Sponsor(s) Period
Ref
2023–present
[16]
2024–present
[17]

Former top league champions

Before the launch of the Saudi Women's Premier League, two leagues were established to test and set things up, laying the foundation for the top-tier competition. These leagues served as crucial stepping stones, refining the structure and ensuring the success of the premier league.

The list of champions and runners-up:

Year Champions Runners-up Ref
Women's Community Football League
[18]
2020–21
Al-Hilal
Al-Ittihad
SAFF Women's National Football Championship
[19]
2021–22
Al-Nassr
Al-Hilal
  • Al-Hilal (ex. Challenge SC)
  • Al-Ittihad (ex. Jeddah Eagles LFC)
  • Al-Nassr (ex. Al-Mamlaka FC)

References

  1. ^ Diamond, Drew (29 February 2020). "Saudi Arabia form Women's Football League". Her Football Hub. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  2. ^ "Saudi female athletes challenge Muslim norms". espn. Barbara Surk. 17 February 2012. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  3. ^ "Jeddah Eagles flying high with women's football win". Arab News. 9 December 2019. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  4. ^ Naidu, Dr Unnati (3 January 2022). "Saudi Arabia: First women's football league from fan's perspective". Her Football Hub. Retrieved 18 October 2023.
  5. ^ "Saudi Arabia launches a soccer league for women". CNN. Ivana Kottasová & Chandler Thornton. 27 February 2020. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  6. ^ "الدوري السعودي النسائي". saudileague.com. Muhammad Aamer. 23 November 2020. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  7. ^ "Challenge Team First Winner Of The Saudi WFL". sportsforall.com. 18 December 2020. Archived from the original on 7 October 2021. Retrieved 7 October 2021.
  8. ^ "DAZN further invests in women's football with deal to broadcast Saudi Women's Premier League | DAZN News US". DAZN. 13 October 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  9. ^ "حضور إنفانتينو يؤكد استمرار دعم الكرة النسائية السعودية" [Infantino's presence confirms the continued support for Saudi women's football.]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 15 December 2023. Retrieved 20 April 2024.
  10. ^ "لاعبة برشلونة تشهد قمة الدوري السعودي للسيدات" [Barcelona player witnesses the summit of the Saudi Women's League.]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 23 December 2023. Retrieved 24 April 2024.
  11. ^ "الدوري السعودي للسيدات يدخل مرحلة جديدة في البث التلفزيوني" [The Saudi Women's League enters a new phase in television broadcasting.]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 22 May 2024. Retrieved 23 May 2024.
  12. ^ "كرة القدم النسائية في السعودية تواصل الازدهار" [The Women's football in Saudi Arabia continues to flourish.]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 31 May 2024. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
  13. ^ "الدوري السعودي للسيدات يستقبل بطل كأس العالم" [Saudi Women's League welcomes World Cup champion.]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 12 January 2025. Retrieved 14 January 2025.
  14. ^ "Al-Nassr Saudi Women's Premier League Champions". Saudi Gazette. 19 December 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  15. ^ "Al-Nassr Are The 2023/2024 Saudi Women's Premier League Champions". Forbes. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  16. ^ Arab News (26 December 2024). "PepsiCo. subsidiary Lay's unveiled as sponsor of Saudi Women's Premier League". Arab News.
  17. ^ Saudi National Bank (26 December 2024). "SNB and SAFF have renewed the official sponsorship of Saudi football for 3 years". Al-Ahli Bank.
  18. ^ "فريق التحدي يسجل نفسه في تاريخ الرياضة النسائية". Al-Yaum (in Arabic). Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  19. ^ "7 أهداف تقود «فريق المملكة» لذهب قدم السيدات". Okaz (in Arabic). Retrieved 15 December 2024.

See also