Al Hilal and Al Ittihad add another chapter to great rivalry in King Salman Cup 'clasico'

The intense rivalry between Al Hilal and Al Ittihad will be put to the test once again as the Saudi Arabian powerhouses prepare to face off in the King Salman Cup.

The conclusion of the group stage action of the tournament saw Al Ittihad and Al Hilal record 2-1 victories over Iraq’s Al Shorta and Morocco’s Wydad respectively to book their places in the quarter-finals.

The results also meant the two Saudi sides will lock horns in the knockout round, with Al Ittihad topping Group A with the full nine points, and Al Hilal finishing as Group B runners-up. Their clash in Taif on Saturday not only brings some of the biggest stars in the region face to face, but also carries decades of history, rivalry and tradition with it.

While Saudi Arabia’s two major derbies are those in the capital Riyadh between Al Hilal and Al Nassr and in Jeddah between Al Ahli and Al Ittihad, the game between Al Hilal and Al Ittihad has grown in stature, earning the nickname ‘the Saudi clasico’.

Just like the original clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona, its Saudi counterpart pits a team from the capital against one from the main coastal metropolis. And this too is a match between two of the most successful clubs in the region.

Al Ittihad are Saudi Arabia’s oldest existing football club, tracing its roots to 1927 - mere months after King Abdulaziz Al Saud declared Jeddah and the western Hejaz region part of the newly unified kingdom. Al Hilal came into existence three decades later, initially under the name ‘Olympic Club’ in Riyadh.

But it wasn’t until the late mid 1960s that the two sides crossed paths.

Al Hilal players ahead of their King Salman Cup match against Libya's Al Ahli Tripoli. AFP

With a nationwide league still a decade away, the