Saudi Arabia national football team

Early history (1951–1955)

The idea of a Saudi national team first came about in 1951, when a Saudi XI team consisting of players from Al-Wehda and Al-Ahli took part in a friendly game against the Egyptian Ministry of Health on 27 June at the Al-Saban Stadium in Jeddah. The following day, the Egyptians took on a Saudi team made up of players from Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal in Al-Bahri in the same city. On 2 August, His Royal Highness Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal organized a third friendly with the Egyptian team against Saudi Arabia with players from Al-Wehda, and Al-Ahli. By then, the idea of a national select team to represent the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia was already in full flow, and in 1953 the first-ever Saudi team traveled to play friendly matches abroad. The same year, a Saudi team traveled to Damascus to play friendly matches as part of then-Crown Prince Saud bin Abdulaziz's visit to the country in April.^[6]

In 1957, the Saudi national team took part in their first international tournament at the 2nd Pan-Arab Games in Beirut, where King Saud was invited to attend the opening ceremony and the inauguration of the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium with Lebanese President Camille Chamoun on 18 October. Abdulmajeed Kayal scored for the Saudis while Levon Altonian netted for the home side.^[7]

Debuting successes and subsequent declines (1956–2016)

Though their football federation was established in 1956, the Saudi Arabia national team did not participate in a tournament until they qualified for the AFC Asian Cup in 1984, and became the champions for the first time.^[8] Since then, they reached the next four consecutive Asian Cup finals, winning two of them (1988 and 1996).^[9][10] They have qualified for every AFC Asian Cup since, reaching the final in the 2007 edition.^[11]

Saudi Arabia qualified for their first FIFA World Cup in 1994 under the leadership of Argentine manager Jorge Solari and talents like Saeed Al-Owairan and Sami Al-Jaber, reinforced by national veteran Majed Abdullah as team captain. Wins against Belgium and Morocco in the group stage led to a match-up against Sweden in the round of 16, a 3–1 loss.^[12] Saudi Arabia qualified for the next three World Cups, but failed to win a match in any of them; in 1998, the team suffered an agonizing group stage elimination for the first time after only a draw was gained, which happened against South Africa after Saudi Arabia squandered their original 2–1 lead while losing two earlier fixtures against Denmark and eventual champions and hosts France, while the team placed last in 2002 without scoring a goal, while conceding 12, including eight against Germany, the most humiliating World Cup performance ever by an Asian team since 1954, and the team did no better in 2006 after winning only a single point against Arab rival Tunisia, and also squandered a 2–1 lead in the last minutes before losing to Ukraine and Spain in an identical version to the 1998 participation.^[13]

Meanwhile, after the 2007 AFC Asian Cup, Saudi Arabia suffered even further setbacks. The Saudis failed to qualify for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in agonizing playoffs that saw them again squandered their 2–1 lead to a 2–2 draw to neighbor Bahrain.^[14] In the 2011 AFC Asian Cup, the Saudis went on to have the worst-ever Asian Cup performance in the history, losing all three games in a shocking style to Syria, Jordan and Japan.^[15] Later on, Saudi Arabia failed to qualify for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, failing in the third round to Australia and Oman. This embarrassing record kept following the Saudis into the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, as the Saudis suffered another group stage exit, this time losing to China and Uzbekistan, and only gained a single win over North Korea.^{[citation needed]}

Revival, history written, but fall short (2017–present)

Saudi Arabia secured qualification for the 2018 FIFA World Cup, their first in 12 years,^[16] ahead of Australia. In the 2018 FIFA World Cup opening match, Saudi Arabia face hosts Russia as the Russian annihilated them in the opening match 5–0,^[17] making this the second largest victory of any host.^[18] Saudi Arabia then lost 1–0 to a Luis Suárez goal that put Uruguay as the eventual group winners.^[19] Although they were already eliminated,^[20] Saudi Arabia managed to salvage some pride by winning their final group stage match against Red Sea neighbours Egypt.^[21]

After the 2018 FIFA World Cup, Saudi Arabia participated in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup, held in the United Arab Emirates; the team finished second in the group stage, after falling to Qatar in the final game,^[22] leading to a showdown against Japan in the round of 16. The Saudis dominated the whole game, but ultimately lost 1–0 due to poor finishing.^[23]

On 15 October 2019, Saudi Arabia played its first-ever game with Palestine in the West Bank; the game marked a change in policy for Saudi Arabia, which has previously played matches against the Palestinian team in third-party countries. The visit was condemned by some Palestinian activists, who considered the game as a start of normalizing the relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel, but it was viewed by the Palestinian National Authority as a support for their sovereignty over the West Bank.^[24] The game ended in a scoreless draw.^[25]

Saudi Arabia qualified for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, the first to be held in the Middle East, by topping their qualifying group and were drawn against Argentina, Poland and Mexico.^[26] In the opening game of their group, they defeated a much fancied Argentina side 2–1 within just five minutes in the early of the second half with goals from Saleh Al-Shehri and the beautiful curl of Salem Al-Dawsari, ending an Argentine unbeaten streak of 36 games dating back to 2019. The Saudi King declared a Holiday after the win over Argentina and Saudi fans celebrated with mocking words against Lionel Messi, Argentine team and the other opponents.^[27][28] They then lost their next match against Poland, 2–0. Piotr Zieliński broke Saudi hearts with a goal in 39th minute; Salem Al-Dawsari's penalty was saved by Polish goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny in the first half when the score was 1–0 while Abdulellah Al-Malki made a mistake to allow Robert Lewandowski to score his first World Cup goal.^[29] This made Saudi require a win against Mexico to advance to the Round of 16 regardless of the Argentina-Poland result. Facing a team that was also playing its qualification in this last game in the same Lusail Iconic Stadium, Saudi Arabia opted to play all-out attack by fielding three strikers in front, but this proved fatal as the Saudis failed to repeat their inaugural achievement and ended up losing the match 2–1 after goals from Henry Martín and Luis Chávez, conceding both goals in just a similar five minutes span (the same span Saudi Arabia shocked Argentina) in the second half.^[30] As a result, Saudi Arabia finished bottom in their group and were eliminated from the 2022 World Cup in the group stages at the despair of Saudi fans, as Saudi Arabia's knockout stage waiting hurt extended to 32 years since their only successful qualification in 1994. Moreover, the defeat also nailed the coffin to West Asian football, as all three representatives from West Asia in the first World Cup in the region (Qatar, Iran, Saudi Arabia) were all eliminated. Still, as Argentina subsequently walked on to eventually claim the 2022 FIFA World Cup title, the shock win Saudi Arabia gained against Argentina, the only team of the tournament to have beaten the Albiceleste, was a major consolation for the country's early World Cup exit.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Saudi Arabia national football team kits.

Traditionally, Saudi Arabia's home kit is white with green trim, and the away kit is green with white trim (flag colors).^[31] From 2023, the team had a color kit reversal where green is the home kit, and white is their away kit.

Kit suppliers

Kit supplier	Period
Admiral	1976–1979
Puma	1980–1984
Faisok	1985–1989
Adidas	1990–1993
Shammel	1994–2000
Adidas	2001–2003
Le Coq Sportif	2004–2005
Puma	2006–2010
Nike[32]	2011–2022
Adidas[33]	2023–present

Saudi Arabia's main rivals are mostly from the same Persian Gulf, notably Iran, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates.

Due to historical reasons, matches against Iran have been frequently followed and seen by Saudis as the most important rival. This stems from the strong hatred between Saudi Arabia and Iran, in particular in recent years due to historical enmities. Iran is leading the series by one game. Saudi Arabia has 4 wins, 6 draws, and 5 losses against Iran. It's one of 10 most heated rivalries with political influence.^[34][35]

Saudi Arabia's other heated rival is Iraq. However, the rivalry only began in the 1970s. Due to the Gulf War, in which Iraq invaded Saudi Arabia's ally Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Iraq eventually became bitter rivals fighting to salvage Arab pride.^[36] The two countries since then have an up-and-down in relations, often ranged from lack of cooperation and political confrontation. Iraq almost pulled out of the 21st Arabian Gulf Cup after the country was disallowed to host the competition in a move believed to be motivated by Saudi Arabia.^[37][38]

Outside the West Asian border, Saudi Arabia also has other rivalries with fellow Asian powerhouses like Japan, Australia, and South Korea; as well as having rivalries with Arab opponents of North Africa, mostly Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia.

Historically, Saudi Arabia played most of their home matches in King Fahd International Stadium, located in the capital Riyadh. The stadium was also where some of Saudi Arabia's most important fixtures were when the country hosted the first three King Fahd Cups (predecessor of the Confederations Cup). The stadium was also home to some of Saudi Arabia's big games in the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Saudi Arabia started to diversify the use of venues from outside Riyadh in the 2000s, with the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifiers first round played in Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium in Dammam and the second round played entirely in Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium. In the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualifiers second round against Sri Lanka and at the first fixture against Uzbekistan in the third round, Saudi Arabia played again in Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium. It was accelerated from 2010s onward as Saudi Arabia began to play frequent home fixtures in newly built King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah and Mrsool Park also in Riyadh.

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

  Win  Draw  Loss  Fixture

2023

Saudi Arabia  v  Venezuela

24 March 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–2	Venezuela	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
22:00 UTC+3	S. Al-Dawsari 73'	Report	J. Martínez 26' Rondón 34'	Stadium: Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium Attendance: 4,960 Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)

Saudi Arabia  v  Bolivia

28 March 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–2	Bolivia	Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
22:00 UTC+3	Al-Dawsari 44' (pen.)	Report	Moreno 13' Algarañaz 68'	Stadium: Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium Attendance: 7,194 Referee: Ahmed Issa (United Arab Emirates)

Saudi Arabia  v  Costa Rica

8 September 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–3	Costa Rica	Newcastle, England
20:00 UTC+1	Al-Bulayhi 68'	Report	Calvo 12' Ugalde 32' Leal 89'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 5,000 Referee: John Brooks (England)

Saudi Arabia  v  South Korea

12 September 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	0–1	South Korea	Newcastle, England
17:30 UTC+1		Report	Cho Gue-sung 32'	Stadium: St James' Park Attendance: 3,000 Referee: Andrew Madley (England)

Saudi Arabia  v  Nigeria

13 October 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	2–2	Nigeria	Portimão, Portugal
17:00 UTC+1	Al-Faraj 60' Kanno 90+5'	Report	Al-Amri 73' (o.g.) Iheanacho 81'	Stadium: Estádio Municipal de Portimão Referee: Luís Godinho (Portugal)

Saudi Arabia  v  Mali

17 October 2023 Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–3	Mali	Portimão, Portugal
16:00 UTC+1	S. Al-Dawsari 58'	Report	M. Doumbia 14' H. Traoré 42' Sinayoko 71'	Stadium: Estádio Municipal de Portimão Referee: António Nobre (Portugal)

Saudi Arabia  v  Pakistan

16 November 2026 WC qualification	Saudi Arabia	4–0	Pakistan	Hofuf, Saudi Arabia
19:30 UTC+3	Al-Shehri 6', 48' (pen.) Ghareeb 90+1' Radif 90+6'	Report		Stadium: Al-Fateh Club Stadium Attendance: 11,150 Referee: Hanna Hattab (Syria)

Jordan  v  Saudi Arabia

21 November 2026 WC qualification	Jordan	0–2	Saudi Arabia	Amman, Jordan
19:00 UTC+3		Report	Al-Shehri 8', 30'	Stadium: Amman International Stadium Attendance: 13,845 Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)

2024

Saudi Arabia  v  Lebanon

4 January Friendly	Saudi Arabia	1–0	Lebanon	Al Wakrah, Qatar
16:30 UTC+3	Al-Buraikan 48'			Stadium: Al Janoub Stadium Attendance: 0

Palestine  v  Saudi Arabia

9 January Friendly	Palestine	0–0	Saudi Arabia	Doha, Qatar
18:30 UTC+3		Report Report (SAFF)	S. AL-Dawsari  52'	Stadium: Al Janoub Stadium Attendance: 0

Saudi Arabia  v  Hong Kong

10 January Friendly	Saudi Arabia	2–0	Hong Kong	Al Wakrah, Qatar
18:30 UTC+3	Ghareeb 21' (pen.) Al-Sqoor 86'			Stadium: Al Janoub Stadium

Saudi Arabia  v  Oman

16 January 2023 AFC Asian Cup GS	Saudi Arabia	2–1	Oman	Al Rayyan, Qatar
20:30 UTC+3	Ghareeb 78' Al-Bulaihi 90+6'	Report	Al-Yahyaei 14' (pen.)	Stadium: Khalifa International Stadium Attendance: 41,987 Referee: Shaun Evans (Australia)

Kyrgyzstan  v  Saudi Arabia

21 January 2023 AFC Asian Cup GS	Kyrgyzstan	0–2	Saudi Arabia	Al Rayyan, Qatar
20:30 UTC+3		Report	Kanno 35' Al-Ghamdi 84'	Stadium: Ahmad bin Ali Stadium Attendance: 39,557 Referee: Jumpei Iida (Japan)

Saudi Arabia  v  Thailand

25 January 2023 AFC Asian Cup GS	Saudi Arabia	0–0	Thailand	Al Rayyan, Qatar
18:00 UTC+3		Report		Stadium: Education City Stadium Attendance: 38,773 Referee: Kim Hee-gon (South Korea)

Saudi Arabia  v  South Korea

30 January 2023 AFC Asian Cup Round of 16	Saudi Arabia	1–1 (a.e.t.) (2–4 p)	South Korea	Al Rayyan, Qatar
19:00 UTC+3	Radif 46'	Report	Cho Gue-sung 90+9'	Stadium: Education City Stadium Attendance: 42,389 Referee: Ilgiz Tantashev (Uzbekistan)
	Penalties
	Kanno Abdulhamid Al-Najei Ghareeb		Son Heung-min Kim Young-gwon Cho Gue-sung Hwang Hee-chan

Saudi Arabia  v  Tajikistan

21 March 2026 World Cup qualification	Saudi Arabia	1–0	Tajikistan	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
22:00 UTC+3	Al-Dawsari 23'			Stadium: Al-Awwal Park Attendance: 18,755 Referee: Muhammad Taqi (Singapore)

Tajikistan  v  Saudi Arabia

26 March 2026 World Cup qualification	Tajikistan	1–1	Saudi Arabia	Dushanbe, Tajikistan
20:00 UTC+5	Soirov 80'		Al-Buraikan 46'	Stadium: Pamir Stadium Attendance: 13,300 Referee: Kim Jong-hyeok (South Korea)

Saudi Arabia  v  Venezuela

31 May Friendly	Saudi Arabia	v	Venezuela	San Pedro del Pinatar, Spain
				Stadium: Pinatar Arena

Pakistan  v  Saudi Arabia

6 June 2026 World Cup qualification	Pakistan	v	Saudi Arabia	Islamabad, Pakistan
--:-- UTC+5				Stadium: Jinnah Sports Stadium

Saudi Arabia  v  Jordan

11 June 2026 World Cup qualification	Saudi Arabia	v	Jordan	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
--:-- UTC+3				Stadium: King Saud University Stadium

As of 28 August 2023

Position	Name	Ref.
Head coach	Roberto Mancini	[39]
Assistant coaches	Attilio Lombardo	[40]
	Fausto Salsano	[40]
	Antonio Gagliardi	[40]
	Yaya Touré	[40]
	Simone Contran	[40]
Goalkeeping coach	Massimo Battara	[40]
	Marco Roccati	[40]
Trainer	Andrea Scanavino	[40]
	Claudio Donatelli	[40]
Scout	Giorgio Venturin	[40]
Technical director	Nasser Larguet	[40]

Coaching history

No.	Coach	Nat	First match	Last match	Pld	W	D	L	Win %
1	Abdulrahman Fawzi		18 October 1957	6 September 1961	6	1	1	4	16.67%
2	Ali Chaouach		1 December 1967	17 January 1969	2	1	0	1	50.00%
3	George Skinner		28 March 1970	2 April 1970	3	0	2	1	0.00%
4	Taha Ismail		16 March 1972	28 March 1972	3	2	1	0	66.67%
5	Abdo Saleh El Wahsh		6 March 1974	29 March 1974	6	4	1	1	66.67%
6	Ferenc Puskás		21 November 1975	11 April 1976	16	5	1	10	31.25%
7	Bill McGarry		5 September 1976	22 April 1977	12	3	2	7	25.00%
8	Ronnie Allen		15 November 1978	14 December 1978	4	0	3	1	0.00%
9	David Woodfield		24 March 1979	8 April 1979	6	3	2	1	50.00%
10	Rubens Minelli		30 January 1980	19 December 1981	22	9	3	10	40.91%
11	Mário Zagallo		21 March 1982	17 March 1984	17	7	5	5	41.18%
12	Khalil Ibrahim Al-Zayani		20 March 1984	5 April 1986	39	19	9	11	48.72%
13	Carlos Castilho		7 September 1986	5 October 1986	7	4	2	1	57.14%
14	Omar Borrás		17 February 1988	18 March 1988	7	2	4	1	28.57%
15	Carlos Alberto Parreira (1)		21 April 1988	28 October 1989	26	10	9	7	38.46%
16	Paulo Massa		24 September 1990	1 October 1990	3	2	1	0	66.67%
17	Nelsinho Rosa		11 September 1992	10 December 1992	14	7	3	4	50.00%
18	Candinho		9 April 1993	24 October 1993	19	12	5	2	63.16%
19	Mohammed Al-Kharashy (1)		28 October 1993	28 October 1993	1	1	0	0	100.00%
20	Leo Beenhakker		23 January 1994	9 February 1994	4	1	2	1	25.00%
21	Jorge Solari		26 March 1994	3 July 1994	12	4	2	6	33.33%
22	Ivo Wortmann		1 October 1994	13 October 1994	5	3	0	2	60.00%
23	Mohammed Al-Kharashy (2)		19 October 1994	8 January 1995	11	6	1	4	54.54%
24	Zé Mário		8 October 1995	27 October 1996	20	9	5	6	45.00%
25	Nelo Vingada		6 November 1996	11 October 1997	25	16	6	3	64.00%
26	Otto Pfister (1)		17 October 1997	16 December 1997	8	3	2	3	37.50%
27	Carlos Alberto Parreira (2)		22 February 1998	18 June 1998	10	2	4	4	20.00%
28	Mohammed Al-Kharashy (3)		24 June 1998	24 June 1998	1	0	1	0	0.00%
29	Otto Pfister (2)		11 September 1998	11 November 1998	11	9	2	0	81.81%
30	Milan Máčala		18 June 1999	14 October 2000	26	11	6	9	42.31%
31	Nasser Al-Johar (1)		17 October 2000	19 February 2001	13	11	1	1	84.61%
32	Slobodan Santrač		10 July 2001	24 August 2001	7	3	2	2	42.86%
33	Nasser Al-Johar (2)		31 August 2001	11 June 2002	23	13	2	8	56.52%
34	Gerard van der Lem		17 December 2002	26 July 2004	26	17	6	3	65.38%
35	Martin Koopman		30 December 2002	30 December 2002	1	1	0	0	100.00%
36	Nasser Al-Johar (3)		1 September 2004	17 November 2004	5	3	2	0	60.00%
37	Gabriel Calderón		11 December 2004	8 December 2005	19	8	4	7	42.11%
38	Marcos Paquetá		18 January 2006	27 January 2007	30	13	7	10	43.33%
39	Hélio dos Anjos		24 June 2007	7 June 2008	22	15	3	4	68.18%
40	Nasser Al-Johar (4)		14 June 2008	11 February 2009	18	10	5	3	55.55%
41	José Peseiro		22 March 2009	9 January 2011	31	12	12	7	38.71%
42	Nasser Al-Johar (5)		13 January 2011	17 January 2011	2	0	0	2	0.00%
43	Rogério Lourenço		13 July 2011	28 July 2011	4	2	1	1	50.00%
44	Frank Rijkaard		2 September 2011	12 January 2013	17	4	6	7	23.53%
45	Khalid Al-Koroni		9 December 2012	15 December 2012	3	1	1	1	33.33%
46	Juan Ramón López Caro		6 February 2013	26 November 2014	19	9	4	6	47.37%
47	Cosmin Olăroiu		30 December 2014	18 January 2015	4	1	0	3	25.00%
48	Faisal Al Baden		30 March 2015	11 June 2015	2	2	0	0	100.00%
49	Bert van Marwijk		3 September 2015	9 November 2017	20	13	4	3	65.00%
50	Edgardo Bauza		10 November 2017	13 November 2017	2	0	0	2	0.00%
51	Krunoslav Jurčić		22 December 2017	28 December 2017	3	1	1	1	33.33%
52	Juan Antonio Pizzi		26 February 2018	21 January 2019	22	7	5	10	31.82%
53	Youssef Anbar		21 March 2019	25 March 2019	2	1	0	1	50.00%
54	Hervé Renard		5 September 2019	28 March 2023	46	18	12	16	39.13%
55	Laurent Bonadéi[a]		1 December 2021	7 December 2021	3	0	1	2	0.00%
56	Saad Al-Shehri[b]		6 January 2023	23 August 2023	3	1	0	2	33.33%
57	Roberto Mancini		28 August 2023	Present	15	7	5	3	46.67%

Notes

Current squad

The following 23 players were called up for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification games against  Tajikistan on 21 and 26 March 2024.^[41]

Caps and goals are correct as of 26 March 2024, after the match against  Tajikistan, as recognized by SAFF.

No.	Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club
21	1GK	Mohammed Al-Owais	(1991-10-10) 10 October 1991 (age 32)	54	0	Al-Hilal
1	1GK	Mohammed Al-Rubaie	(1997-08-14) 14 August 1997 (age 26)	7	0	Al-Hilal
22	1GK	Ahmed Al-Kassar	(1991-05-08) 8 May 1991 (age 32)	3	0	Al-Qadsiah
13	2DF	Yasser Al-Shahrani	(1992-05-25) 25 May 1992 (age 31)	78	2	Al-Hilal
6	2DF	Mohammed Al-Breik	(1992-09-15) 15 September 1992 (age 31)	46	1	Al-Hilal
5	2DF	Mohammed Al-Fatil	(1992-01-04) 4 January 1992 (age 32)	15	1	Al-Nassr
4	2DF	Ali Lajami	(1996-04-24) 24 April 1996 (age 28)	9	0	Al-Nassr
14	2DF	Hassan Kadesh	(1992-09-27) 27 September 1992 (age 31)	7	0	Al-Ittihad
2	2DF	Fawaz Al-Sqoor	(1996-04-23) 23 April 1996 (age 28)	5	0	Al-Ittihad
3	2DF	Awn Al-Saluli	(1998-09-02) 2 September 1998 (age 25)	6	0	Al-Taawoun
2	2DF	Rayane Hamidou	(2002-04-13) 13 April 2002 (age 22)	0	0	Al-Ahli
10	3MF	Salem Al-Dawsari	(1991-08-19) 19 August 1991 (age 32)	84	23	Al-Hilal
23	3MF	Mohamed Kanno	(1994-09-22) 22 September 1994 (age 29)	53	3	Al-Hilal
8	3MF	Abdulellah Al-Malki	(1994-10-11) 11 October 1994 (age 29)	33	0	Al-Hilal
18	3MF	Abdulrahman Ghareeb	(1997-03-31) 31 March 1997 (age 27)	27	3	Al-Nassr
16	3MF	Sami Al-Najei	(1997-02-07) 7 February 1997 (age 27)	21	2	Al-Nassr
15	3MF	Ayman Yahya	(2001-05-14) 14 May 2001 (age 22)	11	0	Al-Nassr
7	3MF	Mukhtar Ali	(1997-10-30) 30 October 1997 (age 26)	11	0	Al-Fateh
17	3MF	Faisal Al-Ghamdi	(2001-08-13) 13 August 2001 (age 22)	8	1	Al-Ittihad
19	3MF	Abbas Al-Hassan	(2004-02-22) 22 February 2004 (age 20)	3	0	Al-Fateh
9	4FW	Firas Al-Buraikan	(2000-05-14) 14 May 2000 (age 23)	39	7	Al-Ahli
11	4FW	Saleh Al-Shehri	(1993-11-01) 1 November 1993 (age 30)	35	15	Al-Hilal
20	4FW	Abdullah Radif	(2003-01-20) 20 January 2003 (age 21)	13	2	Al-Shabab

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Saudi Arabia squad within the last 12 months.

Pos.	Player	Date of birth (age)	Caps	Goals	Club	Latest call-up
GK	Nawaf Al-Aqidi	(2000-05-10) 10 May 2000 (age 23)	4	0	Al-Nassr	2023 AFC Asian Cup WD
GK	Hamed Al-Shanqiti	(2005-04-26) 26 April 2005 (age 19)	0	0	Al-Shabab	v.  Jordan, 21 November 2023
GK	Osama Al-Mermesh	(2003-07-06) 6 July 2003 (age 20)	0	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  Bolivia, 28 March 2023
DF	Ali Al-Bulaihi	(1989-11-21) 21 November 1989 (age 34)	52	2	Al-Hilal	v.  Tajikistan, 26 March 2024 SUS
DF	Saud Abdulhamid	(1999-07-18) 18 July 1999 (age 24)	35	1	Al-Hilal	v.  Tajikistan, 26 March 2024 WD
DF	Moteb Al-Harbi	(2000-02-20) 20 February 2000 (age 24)	4	0	Al-Shabab	v.  Tajikistan, 21 March 2024 INJ
DF	Waleed Al-Ahmed	(1999-05-03) 3 May 1999 (age 24)	2	0	Al-Taawoun	v.  Tajikistan, 21 March 2024 INJ
DF	Hassan Al-Tambakti	(1999-02-09) 9 February 1999 (age 25)	29	0	Al-Hilal	2023 AFC Asian Cup
DF	Muath Faqeehi	(2002-05-30) 30 May 2002 (age 21)	1	0	Al-Taawoun	v.  Jordan, 21 November 2023
DF	Abdulbasit Hindi	(1997-02-02) 2 February 1997 (age 27)	0	0	Al-Ahli	v.  Jordan, 21 November 2023
DF	Abdulelah Al-Amri	(1997-01-15) 15 January 1997 (age 27)	28	1	Al-Nassr	v.  Jordan, 21 November 2023 INJ
DF	Sultan Al-Ghannam	(1994-05-06) 6 May 1994 (age 29)	30	0	Al-Nassr	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
DF	Zakaria Hawsawi	(2001-01-12) 12 January 2001 (age 23)	1	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
DF	Ahmed Bamsaud	(1995-11-22) 22 November 1995 (age 28)	7	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
DF	Ahmed Sharahili	(1994-05-08) 8 May 1994 (age 29)	5	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
MF	Nasser Al-Dawsari	(1998-12-19) 19 December 1998 (age 25)	20	0	Al-Hilal	v.  Tajikistan, 26 March 2024 INJ
MF	Abdullah Al-Khaibari	(1996-08-16) 16 August 1996 (age 27)	21	0	Al-Nassr	v.  Tajikistan, 21 March 2024 INJ
MF	Eid Al-Muwallad	(2001-12-14) 14 December 2001 (age 22)	2	0	Al-Okhdood	2023 AFC Asian Cup
MF	Fahad Al-Muwallad	(1994-09-14) 14 September 1994 (age 29)	76	17	Al-Shabab	2023 AFC Asian Cup INJ
MF	Ali Hazazi	(1994-02-18) 18 February 1994 (age 30)	8	0	Al-Ettifaq	2023 AFC Asian Cup PRE
MF	Khalid Al-Ghannam	(2000-11-07) 7 November 2000 (age 23)	3	0	Al-Nassr	2023 AFC Asian Cup PRE
MF	Abdulelah Hawsawi	(2001-06-02) 2 June 2001 (age 22)	0	0	Al-Khaleej	v.  Jordan, 21 November 2023
MF	Salman Al-Faraj	(1989-08-01) 1 August 1989 (age 34)	73	9	Al-Hilal	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
MF	Abdulaziz Al-Bishi	(1994-03-11) 11 March 1994 (age 30)	22	1	Damac	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
MF	Riyadh Sharahili	(1993-04-28) 28 April 1993 (age 31)	9	0	Al-Shabab	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
MF	Sumayhan Al-Nabit	(1996-03-27) 27 March 1996 (age 28)	3	1	Al-Ahli	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
MF	Fahad Al-Rashidi	(1997-05-16) 16 May 1997 (age 26)	1	0	Al-Ahli	v.  South Korea, 12 September 2023
MF	Hussain Al-Qahtani	(1994-12-20) 20 December 1994 (age 29)	2	0	Al-Shabab	v.  Bolivia, 28 March 2023
MF	Abdulrahman Al-Aboud	(1995-06-01) 1 June 1995 (age 28)	5	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  Bolivia, 28 March 2023 INJ
FW	Talal Haji	(2007-09-16) 16 September 2007 (age 16)	1	0	Al-Ittihad	2023 AFC Asian Cup
FW	Mohammed Maran	(2001-02-15) 15 February 2001 (age 23)	6	0	Al-Nassr	2023 AFC Asian Cup PRE
FW	Abdullah Al-Hamdan	(1999-09-13) 13 September 1999 (age 24)	28	5	Al-Hilal	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
FW	Haroune Camara	(1998-01-01) 1 January 1998 (age 26)	12	0	Al-Ittihad	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
FW	Haitham Asiri	(2001-03-25) 25 March 2001 (age 23)	10	1	Al-Ahli	v.  Mali, 17 October 2023
COV Player withdrew from the squad due to contracting COVID-19. INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury. PRE Preliminary squad. RET Retired from the national team. SUS Player is serving a suspension. WD Player withdrew from the squad due to non-injury issue.

As of 20 November 2018^[42]

Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only

Players in bold are still active with Saudi Arabia.

Most appearances

Top goalscorers

*Denotes draws includes knockout matches decided on penalty shootouts. Red border indicates that the tournament was hosted on home soil. Gold, silver, bronze backgrounds indicate 1st, 2nd and 3rd finishes respectively. Bold text indicates best finish in tournament.

  Champion    Runners-up    Third place  

FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup										Qualification
Year	Round	Pos.	Pld	W	D	L	F	A		Pld	W	D	L	F	A
1930 to 1954	Not a FIFA member									Not a FIFA member
1958 to 1974	Did not enter									Did not enter
1978	Did not qualify									4	1	0	3	3	7
1982										10	4	1	5	9	16
1986										2	0	1	1	0	1
1990										9	4	3	2	11	9
1994	Round of 16	12th	4	2	0	2	5	6		11	6	5	0	28	7
1998	Group stage	28th	3	0	1	2	2	7		14	9	3	2	26	7
2002		32nd	3	0	0	3	0	12		14	11	2	1	47	8
2006		28th	3	0	1	2	2	7		12	10	2	0	24	2
2010	Did not qualify									16	8	5	3	25	15
2014										8	3	3	2	14	7
2018	Group stage	26th	3	1	0	2	2	7		18	12	3	3	45	14
2022		25th	3	1	0	2	3	5		18	13	4	1	34	10
2026	To be determined									4	3	1	0	8	1
2030										To be determined
2034	Qualified as host									Qualified as host
Total	Round of 16	6/17	19	4	2	13	14	44		139	83	33	23	272	104

AFC Asian Cup

AFC Asian Cup record										AFC Asian Cup qualification record
Year	Result	Position	M	W	D	L	GF	GA		M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1956	Not an AFC member									Not an AFC member
1960
1964
1968
1972
1976	Withdrew									6	3	1	2	12	5
1980										Withdrew
1984	Champions	1st	6	3	3	0	7	3		4	4	0	0	19	0
1988	Champions	1st	6	3	3	0	5	1		Automatic qualification as champions
1992	Runners-up	2nd	5	2	2	1	8	3		Automatic qualification as champions
1996	Champions	1st	6	3	2	1	11	6		4	4	0	0	10	0
2000	Runners-up	2nd	6	3	1	2	11	8		Automatic qualification as champions
2004	Group stage	13th	3	0	1	2	3	5		6	6	0	0	31	1
2007	Runners-up	2nd	6	4	1	1	12	6		6	5	0	1	21	4
2011	Group stage	15th	3	0	0	3	1	8		Automatic qualification as runners-up
2015		10th	3	1	0	2	5	5		6	5	1	0	9	3
2019	Round of 16	12th	4	2	0	2	6	3		8	6	2	0	28	4
2023		9th	4	2	2	0	5	2		8	6	2	0	22	4
2027	Qualified as host									Qualified as host
Total	3 Titles	12/19	52	23	15	14	74	50		48	39	6	3	152	21

FIFA Arab Cup

FIFA Arab Cup record
Year	Result	M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1963	Did not enter
1964
1966
1985	Third place	4	2	1	1	7	3
1988	Group stage	4	0	2	2	1	4
1992	Runners-up	4	2	1	1	7	5
1998	Champions	4	4	0	0	12	3
2002	Champions	6	5	1	0	11	3
2009	Cancelled
2012	Fourth place	4	1	1	2	6	5
2021	Group stage	3	0	1	2	1	3
Total	7/10	29	14	7	8	45	26

West Asian Football Federation Championship

WAFF Championship record
Year	Round	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
2000	Did not participate
2002
2004
2007
2008
2010
2012	Group stage	3	1	1	1	1	1
2014		2	0	1	1	1	4
2019		3	0	1	2	1	5
2023	Qualified
Total	4/10	8	1	3	4	3	10

Arabian Gulf Cup

Arabian Gulf Cup record
Year	Result	Position	M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1970	Third place	3rd	3	0	2	1	2	4
1972	Runners-up	2nd	3	2	1	0	10	2
1974	Runners-up	2nd	4	3	0	1	9	6
1976	Group stage	5th	6	2	0	4	8	14
1979	Third place	3rd	6	3	2	1	14	4
1982	Group stage	4th	5	2	1	2	6	4
1984	Third place	3rd	6	3	1	2	9	8
1986	Third place	3rd	6	3	0	3	9	9
1988	Third place	3rd	6	2	3	1	5	4
1990	Withdrew
1992	Third place	3rd	5	3	0	2	6	4
1994	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	10	4
1996	Third place	3rd	5	2	2	1	8	6
1998	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	2	0	5	2
2002	Champions	1st	5	4	1	0	10	3
2003–04	Champions	1st	6	4	2	0	8	2
2004	Group stage	5th	3	1	0	2	4	5
2007	Third place	3rd	4	2	1	1	4	3
2009	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	2	0	10	0
2010	Runners-up	2nd	5	2	2	1	6	2
2013	Group stage	5th	3	1	0	2	2	3
2014	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	1	1	9	5
2017–18	Group stage	6th	3	1	1	1	2	3
2019	Runners-up	2nd	5	3	0	2	7	5
2023	Group stage	6th	3	1	0	2	3	4
Total	3 Titles	24/25	112	57	25	30	166	106

Arab Games

Arab Games record
Year	Result	M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1953	Did not enter
1957	Group stage	3	1	1	1	4	3
1961	Fifth place	5	1	0	4	4	38
1965	Did not enter
1976	Runners-up	6	3	1	2	9	4
1985	Fourth place	4	3	0	1	6	3
1997	Did not enter
1999	First round	2	0	1	1	2	3
2007	Third place	4	1	1	2	5	5
2011	First round	2	0	1	1	0	2
2023–present	See Saudi Arabia national under-23 football team
Total	7/10	26	9	5	12	30	58

*Denotes draws and includes knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

Asian Games

Asian Games record
Year	Round	Position	M	W	D	L	GF	GA
1951	Did not enter
1954
1958
1962
1966
1970
1974
1978	Group stage	10th	3	0	2	1	3	4
1982	Semi-final	Third place	6	3	2	1	7	4
1986	Final	Runners-up	6	3	2	1	9	6
1990	Quarterfinals	5th	3	2	1	0	6	0
1994	Quarterfinals	5th	5	3	0	2	9	10
1998	Did not enter
2002–present	See Saudi Arabia national under-23 football team
Total	Final	5/13	23	11	7	5	34	24

FIFA Confederations Cup

FIFA Confederations Cup record
Year	Round	Position	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA
1992	Runners-up	2nd	2	1	0	1	4	3
1995	Group stage	5th	2	0	0	2	0	4
1997		7th	3	1	0	2	1	8
1999	Fourth place	4th	5	1	1	3	8	16
2001	Did not qualify
2003
2005
2009
2013
2017
Total	Runners-up	4/10	12	3	1	8	13	31

The following table shows Saudi Arabia's all-time international record, correct as of 15 Jan 2024.

• world football.net
• FIFA.com

International

• FIFA Confederations Cup:
  • Runner-up: 1992
  • Fourth Place: 1999
• Afro-Asian Cup of Nations:
  • Runner-up: 1985, 1997

Continental

• AFC Asian Cup:
  • Winner: 1984, 1988, 1996
  • Runner-up: 1992, 2000, 2007
• Asian Games
  • Silver Medalists: 1986
  • Bronze Medalists: 1982

Regional

• Arabian Gulf Cup:
  • Winner: 1994, 2002, 2003–04
  • Runner-up: 1972, 1974, 1998, 2009, 2010, 2014, 2019
  • Third Place: 1970, 1979, 1984, 1986, 1988, 1992, 1996, 2007

• Arab Cup:
  • Winner: 1998, 2002
  • Runner-up: 1992
  • Third Place: 1985
  • Fourth Place: 2012

• Arab Games

• • Silver Medalists: 1976
  • Bronze Medalists: 2007

Other

• Islamic Solidarity Games
  • Gold Medalists: 2005

AFC Asian Cup

Preceded by 1980 Kuwait	Asian Cup Champions 1984 (First title) 1988 (Second title)	Succeeded by 1992 Japan
Preceded by 1992 Japan	Asian Cup Champions 1996 (Third title)	Succeeded by 2000 Japan

FIFA Arab Cup

Preceded by 1992 Egypt

Arab Cup Champions 1998 (First title) 2002 (Second title)

Succeeded by 2012 Morocco

Arabian Gulf Cup

Preceded by 1992 Qatar	Gulf Cup Champions 1994 (First title)	Succeeded by 1996 Kuwait
Preceded by 1998 Kuwait	Gulf Cup Champions 2002 (Second title) 2003–04 (Third title)	Succeeded by 2004 Qatar

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Saudi Arabia national football team.

• Official website
• Saudi Arabia at FIFA
• Saudi Arabia at AFC
• Saudi Arabia national football team website
• Saudi Arabia in FIFAWorldCup.com
• Saudi Arabia in WC 2022