Saudi football striving to ensure current success is long-lasting

In Saudi Arabian football at the moment it’s hard to think about anything other than the stunning signing of Cristiano Ronaldo by Saudi Pro League table-toppers Al-Nassr.

It’s not just the talk of Saudi football, it is the talk of world football.

Go back a month and it was another winger, Salem Al-Dawsari, who was the name on everyone’s lips after his wonder strike gave the Green Falcons a famous victory over eventual World Cup champions Argentina — La Albiceleste’s only loss since the 2019 Copa America.

It is a moment that will live long in the memory of every Saudi football fan.

Not since 1994 and the magical run of Saeed Al-Owairan has a Saudi Arabian player had such an impact on the global stage. That mazy run from Al-Owairan is still replayed almost 30 years on, and so seismic was Al-Dawsari’s strike that it too will be replayed for years and decades to come.

But the important question facing Saudi Arabia after the World Cup will be how to ensure it isn’t another 28 years before their next magical moment.

With so much positive energy around Saudi football, especially on the back of Ronaldo’s arrival in Riyadh, it’s imperative those in charge leverage this moment to build sustained success rather than the boom-bust cycles we’ve seen previously.

To do so Saudi football needs to face and overcome a number of challenges that stand in its way.

For as momentous as Ronaldo’s signing is, for Saudi Arabia to truly take the next step as a football nation and a football team, it’s players heading the other way that is most important.

At least for the foreseeable future, Europe remains the epicenter of world football. It is where the best players ply their trade and it’s where the rest of the world sends its players