Saudi Football Association’s Decision on Foreign Players

The Saudi Football Association’s Professionalism and Player Status Committee made the final decision.

Regarding the number of foreign specialists registered in each team.

Some clubs suffer from having more than 8 foreign players on the roster, which is the number allowed by the Saudi Football Federation.

To overcome this crisis, the Saudi newspaper Al-Riyadhiya quoted a source in the Professionalism Committee as saying that no club should be forced to terminate the contract of any professional exceeding the number allowed.

Utilizing Foreign Players in Competitions

The source said that teams participating in the AFC Champions League or Club World Cup can use the services of all their foreign players as Asian and international federations require the player to be registered on the local federation’s roster through the TMS system.

The source indicated that “Professionalism” has approached the Saudi clubs, which include more than 8 foreign professionals, to reach an agreement with the player, either by benefiting from him in existing competitions, or by reaching an agreement and ending their cooperation with him.

The committee stressed that the club’s failure to agree with a player beyond the allowed number would lead to a legal problem, as that player would have the right to terminate the contract and receive huge financial compensation if he did not take part in 10% of the total number of official matches.

Impact on Al-Ittihad

This decision will serve, in particular, the Saudi club Al-Ittihad, which, in addition to local tournaments, will take part in the AFC Champions League and Club World Cup competitions, since there are currently 9 foreign professionals on its list, and it is possible that their number will increase to 10 after the recovery of Egyptian defender Ahmed Hegazi.

Source: goal