Qiddiya Investment Company (QIC) has reached an agreement for Riyadh-based football clubs Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal to play at its planned 40,000-seat stadium.
Qiddiya will be a vast entertainment resort and will be located around 40km from Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. As well as sports venues, the resort will feature parks, attractions and other entertainment.
Qiddiya aims to deliver on many of the central tenets embodied in Vision 2030, an initiative that seeks to diversify Saudi Arabia’s interests away from the oil sector. The Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia is the 100% shareholder of QIC.
QIC’s partnership with Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal will run from 2022 to 2042 and will be subject to review every five years. Al Hilal said the deals would be worth SR100m (£19.6m/€23.5m/$26.7m) a year.
Qiddiya said the partnership will include several benefits for both clubs and open “new horizons” in sports investment in Asia and the Middle East.
Qiddiya’s planned cliff-top stadium will have a capacity of at least 40,000 once complete and will serve as the home venue for both Al-Nassr and Al-Hilal. The full range of sporting facilities being developed at Qiddiya will also be made available for both clubs. The stadium complex will include corporate hospitality lounges, VIP and ‘VVIP’ seats.
Abdullah bin Nasser Aldawood, managing director of Qiddiya, 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.
“Both Al-Nassr and Al Hilal are set to play their home games at Qiddiya’s world-class venues, including the incredible new cliff-top 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 GDP.”
Click here to read TheStadiumBusiness.com‘s Q&A with Almamoun Alshinghiti, Qiddiya’s executive director of sports, from back in July 2019.
Image: Qiddiya
