Rooted in Passion: Exploring Saudi Arabia’s grassroots football initiatives

From the Mahd Academy to Regional Training Centres to Future Falcons, Saudi Arabia is empowering the next generation of football talent by investing significant time and effort into youth development, laying the foundation for a thriving football future

Perhaps the brightest smiles across Saudi Arabia when the nation was awarded host of FIFA World Cup 2034 were those belonging to its youth footballers. From each corner of the Kingdom, and everywhere in between, youth players aged anywhere between eight and 18 dared to dream that they could be wearing the green of their country on the greatest stage of all.

While everything leads to 2034, there are multiple occasions along the way for those young starlets to be inspired by the world’s best coming to the Kingdom and playing on Saudi soil. The Supercoppa Italiana, featuring the iconic names of Inter Milan, AC Milan, Juventus and Atalanta, being hosted in Riyadh from January 2-6 is just the latest.

Football academies across the country have not only nurtured local talent but also hosted and played against some of the world’s top football academies, including renowned Italian ones, with tournaments enhancing young Saudi footballers through international competition. There are around 27,000 aspiring footballers registered in over 600 football academies and 232 sports clubs in Saudi Arabia.

📸 Mahd Sports Academy

At the forefront of the Kingdom’s efforts to nurture young talent is Mahd Sports Academy, a national centre of excellence for boys and girls aged six to 18. Launched in July 2020 by the Saudi Sports Minister, Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Mahd Sports Academy aims to identify and develop athletic talent across the country, with the aspiration of becoming a global reference in talent identification and development through sports innovation and excellence. Former Inter Milan Champions League and treble-winning manager José Mourinho and ex-Romanian international Ioan Lupescu serve as board members, adding a wealth of football expertise to the academy’s vision.

While football remains the primary focus, Mahd Sports Academy boasts over 400 enrolled students and focuses on four other sports, namely: handball, athletics, taekwondo, and judo. In 2024, Mahd Sports Academy launched the Mahd International Tournament which was hosted in the King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah. Along with Mahd as the hosts, the tournament featured the academy of 2024 Supercoppa Italiana participants Juventus, Japanese club Kashiwa Reysol, Dutch club PSV Eindhoven, Belgian club Royal Antwerp, Ghanaian academy Atraamfuor Academy, and Czech club Slavia Prague.

Player pathways and youth football development are central to the Saudi Arabian Football Federation’s (SAFF) Our Tactics for Tomorrow strategy. Currently, there are 17 Regional Training Centres (RTCs) for boys and girls across Saudi Arabia, with plans to expand to 25 by the end of 2025. These RTCs serve as the starting point for young aspiring footballers, introducing them to organised football before they transition to academies and sports clubs. As part of this initiative, SAFF aims to develop more than 4,000 players by 2025, highlighting its commitment to nurturing the Kingdom’s next generation of football talent.

📸 Future Falcons

Over 3,000 miles from Al Awwal Park and the sand of Riyadh lies the city of Salou on Spain’s northern Mediterranean coast, home to some of Saudi Arabia’s most promising young footballers in the Future Falcons program. Launched in 2019 under the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF), the program initially focused on players aged 18–20 and has since developed over 200 talents, 42 of whom have signed professional football contracts. This season, the Future Falcons program is overseen by former Real Madrid defender Míchel Salgado and features players born in 2009 and 2010, along with the Saudi Arabian Under-16 national team, as part of preparations for the 2034 FIFA World Cup.

Since 2021, the Future Falcons have organised the Al Abtal tournament which is a friendly U-16 competition which pits the Future Falcons against elite European football academies. The fourth edition featured the academies of Italian sides AS Roma and Juventus and the fifth edition also included the academy of current Supercoppa Italiana champions Inter Milan.

Each of those matches, and each of the initiatives implemented across Saudi Arabian youth football, proved that the future of football in the Kingdom is exceptionally bright, with talented footballers across age groups. And in each of those matches, and in each of those initiatives, every Saudi starlet took to the field with their own dream of what they could achieve in football. Because after all, what is football without dreams?