The 2009–10 Saudi Professional League (known as the Zain Professional League for sponsorship reasons) was the 34th season of the Saudi Pro League, the top Saudi professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1976. The season began on 18 August 2009, and ended on 18 March 2010.[2] Al-Ittihad were the defending champions.[3]
| Season | 2009–10 |
|---|---|
| Dates | 18 August 2009 – 18 March 2010 |
| Champions | Al Hilal (12th title) |
| Champions League | Al-Hilal Al-Ittihad Al-Nassr Al-Shabab |
| Matches played | 132 |
| Goals scored | 377 (2.86 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Mohammad Al-Shalhoub (12 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Al-Ittihad 7–1 Al-Qadsiah (26 August 2009) |
| Biggest away win | Najran 0–5 Al Wehda (7 January 2010) |
| Highest scoring | Al-Ittihad 7–1 Al-Qadsiah (26 August 2009) |
| Longest winning run | 6 games[1] Al Hilal |
| Longest unbeaten run | 14 games[1] Al Hilal |
| Longest winless run | 14 games[1] Al-Raed |
| Longest losing run | 8 games[1] Najran |
← 2008–09 2010–11 → | |
Al Hilal secured the title with a 2–0 win away to Al-Hazem on 24 January 2010.[4] Al Hilal won the league with three games to spare. Al Hilal, Al-Ittihad, Al Shabab and Al Nassr all secured a berth for the 2011 AFC Champions League. No teams were relegated at the end of the season following the decision to increase the number of teams from 12 to 14.[5]
Name sponsorship
On 16 June 2009, the Saudi Professional League announced a sponsorship with telecommunication company Zain. As part of the sponsorship deal the Saudi Professional League would be known as the Zain Professional League for the next 4 seasons.[6]
Qualification and Prize Money
The League champions, runners-up and third-placed team, as well as the winners of the King Cup of Champions, qualify for the 2011 AFC Champions League.
The top six teams, and the Crown Prince Cup winners and runners-up qualify for King Cup of Champions.
- Prize money:
- First place: 2.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Second place: 1.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Third place: 1 million Saudi Riyals
Teams
Twelve teams competed in the league – the top nine teams from the previous season, the relegation play-off winner and the two teams promoted from the Saudi First Division. Al-Raed defeated Abha 4–3 on aggregate to confirm their top-flight status.[7] The promoted teams were Al-Qadsiah (returning after a season's absence) and Al-Fateh (playing top-flight football for the first time ever). They replaced Abha (relegated after a season's presence) and Al-Watani (ending their two-year top-flight spell).
Stadiums and locations
Personnel
Managerial changes
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Replaced by | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Hilal |  Georges Leekens | Sacked[8] | Eric Gerets | May 2009 |
| Al-Ahli |  Stoycho Mladenov | Sacked[9] |  Gustavo Alfaro | June 2009 |
| Al-Raed |  Luiz Antônio Zaluar | End of contract[10] |  Acácio Casimiro | June 2009 |
| Al-Hazem |  Ammar Souayah | End of contract[11] |  Mohsen Saleh | July 2009 |
| Al-Nassr | Edgardo Bauza | End of contract[12] |  Jorge da Silva | July 2009 |
| Al-Shabab | Enzo Trossero | End of contract[13] | Jaime Pacheco | July 2009 |
| Al-Qadsiah | Daniel Lanata | Sacked[14] | Ammar Souayah | September 2009 |
| Al-Raed | Acácio Casimiro | Sacked[15] | Edison Mario Souza | October 2009 |
| Najran | Marcelo Zuleta | Sacked[16] | Samir Jouili | October 2009 |
| Al-Ettifaq | Stoycho Mladenov | Sacked[17] | Saber Eid (caretaker) | October 2009 |
| Al-Ettifaq | Saber Eid (caretaker) | End of caretaker period[18] |  Marin Ion | October 2009 |
| Al-Ahli | Gustavo Alfaro | Resigned[19] |  Alan Guido (caretaker) | November 2009 |
| Al-Qadsiah | Ammar Souayah | Resigned[20] | Anas Al Zerqati (caretaker) | November 2009 |
| Al-Hazem | Mohsen Saleh | Resigned[21] | Emad Al Solami (caretaker) | November 2009 |
| Al-Hazem | Emad Al Solami (caretaker) | End of caretaker period[22] | Lula | December 2009 |
| Al-Ahli | Alan Guido (caretaker) | End of caretaker period[23] | Sergio Farias | December 2009 |
| Al-Qadsiah | Anas Al Zerqati (caretaker) | End of caretaker period[24] | Dimitar Dimitrov | December 2009 |
| Najran | Samir Jouili | Sacked[25] | Mourad Okbi | January 2010 |
| Al-Ittihad | Gabriel Calderón | Sacked[26] |  Hassan Khalifah (caretaker) | January 2010 |
| Al-Ittihad | Hassan Khalifah (caretaker) | End of caretaker period[27] | Enzo Trossero | January 2010 |
| Al-Shabab | Jaime Pacheco | Sacked[28] | Edgar | April 2010 |
Foreign players
The number of foreign players is restricted to four per team, including a slot for a player from AFC countries.
- Players name in bold indicates the player was registered during the mid-season transfer window.
- Players name in italic indicates the player was de-registered or left their respective clubs during the mid-season transfer window.
League table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Hilal (C) | 22 | 18 | 2 | 2 | 56 | 18 | +38 | 56 | Qualification for the Champions League group stage and the King Cup of Champions[a] |
| 2 | Al-Ittihad | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 46 | 30 | +16 | 45 | |
| 3 | Al-Nassr | 22 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 38 | 23 | +15 | 43 | |
| 4 | Al-Shabab | 22 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 36 | 23 | +13 | 40 | |
| 5 | Al-Wehda | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 34 | 27 | +7 | 28 | Qualification for the King Cup of Champions |
| 6 | Al-Ahli | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 28 | 29 | −1 | 28 | |
| 7 | Al-Hazem | 22 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 29 | 38 | −9 | 24 | |
| 8 | Al-Fateh | 22 | 6 | 6 | 10 | 26 | 38 | −12 | 24 | |
| 9 | Al-Ettifaq | 22 | 5 | 7 | 10 | 24 | 30 | −6 | 22 | |
| 10 | Al-Qadsiah | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 20 | 40 | −20 | 20 | |
| 11 | Al-Raed | 22 | 3 | 7 | 12 | 18 | 35 | −17 | 16 | |
| 12 | Najran | 22 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 22 | 46 | −24 | 16 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Total goal difference; 3) Total goals scored; 4) Head-to-head points; 5) Head-to-head goal difference; 6) Play-off (only for deciding champion, relegation and AFC competitions participation).
(C) Champions
Notes:
Results
Season statistics
Scoring
Top scorers
Hat-tricks
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Flávio Amado | Al-Shabab | Najran | 3–1 (A) | 19 August 2009 | [30] |
| Naif Hazazi | Al-Ittihad | Al-Qadisiyah | 7–1 (H) | 26 August 2009 | [31] |
| Thiago Neves | Al-Hilal | Al-Ittihad | 5–0 (H) | 10 December 2009 | [32] |
 Hicham Aboucherouane | Al-Ittihad | Al-Hazem | 5–2 (H) | 6 January 2010 | [33] |
| Muhannad Assiri | Al-Wehda | Najran | 5–0 (A) | 7 January 2010 | [34] |
| Abdelkarim Benhenia4 | Al-Wehda | Al-Fateh | 6–0 (H) | 28 January 2010 | [35] |
- Notes
4 Player scored 4 goals
(H) – Home team
(A) – Away team
Clean sheets
Discipline
Player
- Most yellow cards: 8[36]
Ramzi Ben Younès (Al-Fateh)
- Most red cards: 2[36]
Abdullah Al-Garni (Al-Nassr)- Ahmed Menawer (Al-Hazem)
- Mansoor Al-Harbi (Al-Ahli)
- Zakaria Al-Hadaf (Al-Qadsiah)
Club
- Most yellow cards: 56[36]
- Al-Hazem
- Most red cards: 8[36]
- Al-Ittihad
Awards
Arriyadiyah and Mobily Awards for Sports Excellence
The Arriyadiyah and Mobily Awards for Sports Excellence were awarded at the conclusion of the season for the fourth time since its inception in 2007. The awards were sponsored by Saudi newspaper Arriyadiyah and Saudi telecommunication company Mobily. The awards were presented on 13 May 2010.[37]
| Award | Winner | Club |
|---|---|---|
| Player of the Season |   Christian Wilhelmsson Osama Hawsawi Mohammad Al-Sahlawi | Al-Hilal Al-Hilal Al-Nassr |
| Young Player of the Season | Ibrahim Ghaleb Nawaf Al-Abed Khaled Al-Mutairi | Al-Nassr Al-Hilal Al-Hazem |
| Golden Boot | Mohammad Al-Shalhoub | Al-Hilal |
Al-Riyadiya Awards
Another set of awards were awarded at the end of the season. It was announced that AlRiyadiya were presenting their awards for the first time. The awards were known as AlRiyadiya Awards and were presented on 8 May 2010.[38]
- Best Goalkeeper: Waleed Abdullah (Al-Shabab)
- Best defender: Osama Hawsawi (Al-Hilal)
- Best Midfielder:
Christian Wilhelmsson (Al-Hilal) - Best attacker: Mohammad Al-Sahlawi (Al-Nassr)
- Player of the Year: Osama Hawsawi (Al-Hilal)