In less than a decade, women's football in Saudi Arabia has gone from amateur teams hunting for a pitch to a professional league whose clubs compete for talent from around the world. Bloomberg reported on 20 October that Saudi Women's Premier League clubs are now offering foreign players tax-free salaries and expatriate perks to bring them to the Kingdom.
The league kicked off in 2022, and its prize money has quadrupled since then. Al-Nassr collected SAR 2 million for winning last season's title, their fourth in a row, which means they have won every edition of the competition so far. The title also carries a place in the AFC Women's Champions League, turning the domestic race into a route onto the continental stage.
The Saudi Arabian Football Federation set the rules for the current season in August. Each Premier League club may register six foreign professionals, with no more than five on the pitch at once, and must include at least 15 Saudi professionals in a squad of between 16 and 25 players, a balance between importing experience and developing local talent. Clubs may also register two players from the federation's "muwalid" category of Kingdom-born players, one of whom can play at a time.
Players' own stories trace the journey. Back in 2017, Bayan Sadagah helped set up an amateur side in Jeddah simply to have somewhere to play; today she lines up for Al-Ittihad as a professional, while her English team-mate, defender Ashleigh Plumptre, organises school trips to matches to bring young fans into the stands.
The current season started on 10 September and runs until 12 May 2027, with eight clubs taking part: Al-Nassr, Al-Hilal, Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahli, Al-Qadsiah, Al-Ula, NEOM and Al-Taraji.
