The women that built Eastern Flames into a Saudi Women’s Premier League club

Have you heard the one about the Saudi Arabian businesswoman and US Mexican expat who built a women’s football club in Saudi Arabia?

No, it is not the punchline to a bad joke, but instead an inspiring story of ambition, sisterhood and family.

Maram Al-Butairi, a successful Saudi businesswoman, and Karina Chapa, a long-time expat from Houston, are officially the president and vice-president, respectively, of Shulat Alsharqia FC, or Eastern Flames, the Dammam-based club in the eight-team Saudi Women’s Premier League.

Unofficially, however, they are so much more.

Name a role within the club and you can bet they have done it; from filling the water bottles and preparing the kits, to holding babies and feeding the players. All the while they were also coaching, organizing tournaments and building the club and its strategy. All in a day’s work for this pioneering duo.

Single-handedly, they have transformed the club from its origins as recreational pursuit to the professional club it is today; with youth and futsal teams, and a fully professional structure.

“We’re not an amateur club anymore,” said licensed coach Al-Butairi, who has a bachelor’s degree in finance and recently completed her MBA in Spain, which included an internship with the Spanish football federation.

“We were able to transform a team that met with random girls playing, to a team that competes internationally. Because back then we didn’t have anything locally, and slowly but surely (we’ve) become the leading team in the Eastern Province.

“It’s a professional club now with around 50 employees, whether they’re players, staff or coaches.”

Their shared passion has built a powerful force, and an even more powerful bond between the two.

Al-Butairi and