Al-Riyadh SC

Al-Riyadh
Full nameAl-Riyadh Saudi Club[1]
Founded1953 (1953)
GroundPrince Turki bin Abdul Aziz Stadium
Capacity15,000[2]
ManagerVacant
LeagueSaudi Pro League
2024–25Pro League, 12th of 18
Websiteriyadhclub.sa

Riyadh F.C. or Al-Riyadh (Arabic: نادي الرياض السعودي, romanizednādī nādī al-Riyāḍ as-saʿūdī, lit.'Saudi Riyadh Club') is a professional football club based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. It currently plays in the Saudi Pro League (the first tier of professional football in Saudi Arabia). It was established in 1953 as Ahli Al-Riyadh, then changed its name to Al-Yamamah and finally to Al-Riyadh. Best known for its football team, Al-Riyadh also have squads in other sports.

Al-Riyadh have won one major title: the Crown Prince Cup in 1994.[3] The team also finished as runners-up in the Saudi Premier League in 1994;[4] they have never won the top league.

Al-Riyadh was promoted to the Saudi Pro League in 2023.[3]

History

Early history

The club was founded in 1953 under the name "Ahli Al-Riyadh", before changing to "Al-Yamama" and then to "Al-Riyadh."[5] It is currently based in west Riyadh.[6] They reached the final of the Kings Cup in 1962 and 1978, but triumphed on neither occasion.[7]

Golden era

Al-Riyadh was promoted to the Saudi Premier League at the end of the 1988/89 season after winning the Saudi First Division League.[8]

In the early 1990s, under the leadership of the Brazilian coach Zumario and players such as Khalid Al-Qarouni, Talal Al-Jabreen, Yasser Al-Taafi and Fahd Al-Hamdan, Al-Riyadh won the Crown Prince Cup in 1994.[4] They were unable to retain the Cup in 1995, losing in the final to Al-Hilal.[9] However, they did win the 1995 Federation Cup[7] and reached the semi-final of the 1995 Asian Cup Winners' Cup.[10] In 1998, Al-Riyadh once again reached the finals of the Crown Prince Cup, and lost to Al-Ahli.[11]

Al-Riyadh were relegated at the end of the 2004/5 season.[12]

Return to the top flight

Al-Riyadh finished fourth in the Saudi First Division League in the 2022/23 season.[13] Normally, a fourth-place finish would not be good enough for promotion, but the Saudi Premier League was expanding from 16 teams to 18, offering an additional promotion spot.[3]

Honours

Domestic

Continental

Current squad

As of 31 January 2025

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  SCO Vincent Angelini
5 DF  FRA Yoann Barbet
6 MF  KSA Saud Zidan
7 FW  KSA Mohammed Al-Aqel
8 DF  KSA Abdulelah Al-Khaibari
10 MF  KSA Nawaf Al-Abed
11 MF  IRQ Ibrahim Bayesh
15 FW  KSA Nasser Al-Bishi
16 MF  KSA Talal Al-Shubili
19 DF  KSA Faisal Al-Zeer
20 MF  POR Tozé
23 DF  KSA Saud Tambakti
24 FW  KSA Rayan Al-Bloushi
25 DF  KSA Suwailem Al-Menhali
27 DF  KSA Hussain Al-Nowaiqi
28 MF  KSA Bader Al-Mutairi
29 DF  KSA Ahmed Assiri
32 FW  ARG Luca Ramirez
No. Pos. Nation Player
33 GK  KSA Abdulmalik Al-Khaibari
40 GK  KSA Abdulrahman Al-Shammari
50 DF  KSA Nawaf Hawsawi
66 MF  KSA Majed Al-Qahtani
82 GK  CAN Milan Borjan
87 DF  KSA Marzouq Tambakti
88 MF  KSA Yahya Al-Shehri
90 MF  KSA Thamer Al-Dhafeeri
99 MF  ROU Enes Sali (on loan from FC Dallas)
GK  KSA Abdulaziz Al-Awairdhi
DF  KSA Mohammed Al-Khaibari
DF  KSA Osama Al-Bawardi
DF  KSA Sultan Al-Eisa
DF  KSA Sulaiman Hazazi
MF  KSA Maher Al-Mutairi
MF  KSA Mohammed Suhluli
MF  KSA Fahad Al-Jizani

Management staff

Position Staff
Manager Vacant
Assistant manager José Rodrigues
Michael Hefele
Al-Hamidi Abdullah Al Otaibi
Goalkeeper coach Olivier Pédémas
Strength and conditioning coach Prandeep Bordoloi
Doctor Gustavo Campos
Physiotherapists Vacant
Sporting director Vacant

Managerial history

  • Khalid Al-Koroni (11 January 2010 – 12 April 2010)
  • Fahd Al-Hamdan (caretaker) (12 April 2010 – 1 May 2010)
  • Marian Bondrea (1 July 2010 – 19 February 2011)
  • Mohamed Aldo (19 February 2011 – 30 May 2011)
  • Djamel Belkacem (26 July 2011 – 30 May 2012)
  • Ayman El Yamani (3 July 2012 – 12 December 2012)
  • Habib Ben Romdhane (12 December 2012 – 1 May 2014)
  • Amir Alagić (17 June 2014 – 15 September 2014)
  • Lotfi Kadri (16 September 2014 – 15 December 2014)
  • Zouhair Louati (15 December 2014 – 28 July 2015)
  • Leandro Simpson (7 August 2015 – 18 December 2015)
  • Abderrazek Chebbi (18 December 2015 – 30 April 2016)
  • Sultan Khamees (23 June 2016 – 18 November 2016)
  • Hani Anwar (18 November 2016 – 30 May 2017)
  • Adel Latrach (13 July 2017 – 26 November 2017)
  • Yousef Khamees (26 November 2017 – 14 February 2018)
  • Bandar Al-Jaithen (14 February 2018 – 1 April 2018)
  • Amro Anwar (15 August 2018 – 2 December 2018)
  • Bandar Al-Jaithen (2 December 2018 – 27 January 2019)
  • Khalid Al-Koroni (27 January 2019 – 15 October 2019)
  • Saad Al-Subaie (15 October 2019 – 25 January 2020)
  • Yousri bin Kahla (25 January 2020 – 7 February 2021)
  • Anis Chaieb (10 February 2021 – 1 June 2021)
  • Moncef Mcharek (24 June 2021 – 1 May 2022)
  • Dejan Arsov (3 May 2022 – 8 September 2022)
  • Teo Pirija (caretaker) (8 September 2022 – 18 September 2022)
  • Damir Burić (18 September 2022 – 1 June 2023)
  • Yannick Ferrera (6 June 2023 – 20 September 2023)
  • Bandar Al-Kubaishan (caretaker) (20 September 2023 – 8 October 2023)
  • Odair Hellmann (8 October 2023 – 1 June 2024)
  • Sabri Lamouchi (12 July 2024 – 19 April 2025)
  • Bandar Al-Kubaishan (20 April 2025 – 1 June 2025)

International competitions

Overview

As of 1 July 2023
Competition Pld W D L GF GA
Arab Cup Winners' Cup 15 7 2 6 21 18
Arab Super Cup 2 0 2 0 1 1
Asian Cup Winners' Cup 4 3 0 1 7 2
TOTAL 21 10 4 7 29 21

Record by country

Country Pld W D L GF GA GD Win%
Algeria 2 1 1 0 2 1 +1 050.00
Bahrain 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2 100.00
Egypt 2 0 1 1 3 4 −1 000.00
Jordan 2 1 0 1 1 1 +0 050.00
Kuwait 2 1 0 1 2 2 +0 050.00
Lebanon 2 2 0 0 5 0 +5 100.00
Qatar 1 0 0 1 1 3 −2 000.00
Saudi Arabia 1 0 1 0 0 0 +0 000.00
Sudan 1 1 0 0 2 1 +1 100.00
Syria 2 1 0 1 3 2 +1 050.00
Tunisia 3 0 1 2 1 4 −3 000.00
United Arab Emirates 1 1 0 0 2 0 +2 100.00
Yemen 1 1 0 0 5 3 +2 100.00
TOTAL 21 10 4 7 29 21 +8 047.62

Matches

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
1995 Arab Cup Winners' Cup Group B Al-Ahly 2–2 2nd
Club Africain 0–1
Al-Nasr 2–0
Al-Ittihad Aleppo 2–0
SF ES Sahel 0–2 0–2
Asian Cup Winners' Cup 2R Homenmen 3–0 2−0 5–0
QF Kazma 2–1 0−1 2–2[A]
SF Al-Talaba Withdrew
1996 Arab Super Cup Final ES Tunis 1–1 2nd
Al-Hilal 0–0
Arab Cup Winners' Cup Group A Al-Muharraq 2–0 1st
Al-Wehdat 1–0
Olympique Médéa 1–1
SF Al-Faisaly 0–1 0–1
1999 Arab Cup Winners' Cup QR Al-Merrikh 2–1 2nd
Al-Masry 1–2
Al-Ittihad Ibb 5–3
Group B Al-Jaish 1–2 3rd
Al-Gharafa 1–3
MC Oran 1–0

Key: QR – Qualifying round; 1R/2R – First/Second round; R16 – Round of 16; QF – Quarter-final; SF – Semi-final;

Notes
  • ^
    Al-Riyadh advanced after Kazma withdrew.
  • See also

    References

    1. ^ "Al Riyadh Saudi Club". Global Sports Archive. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
    2. ^ "Goalzz.com: live sports scores and news". www.goalzz.com. Retrieved 15 February 2020.
    3. ^ a b c Hankinson, Andrew (18 August 2023). "Behind the scenes of the Saudi Pro League: What really awaits stars like Neymar". The Athletic. Archived from the original on 19 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    4. ^ a b Novello, Alberto. "Saudi Arabia 1993/94". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 3 December 2022. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    5. ^ "مكافأة فوزنا على النصر بخمسة.. طاسة لبن من "أم حسين"!!". Al-Riyadh. 11 July 2010. Archived from the original on 13 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    6. ^ "مكافأة فوزنا على النصر بخمسة.. طاسة لبن من "أم حسين"!!". alriyadh.com. 2 June 2006. Archived from the original on 20 July 2018. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
    7. ^ a b "Saudi Arabia - List of Cup Winners". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    8. ^ "Saudi Arabia 1988/89". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 9 June 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    9. ^ Bobrowsky, Josef (4 May 2001). "Saudi Arabia 1994/95". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    10. ^ "Asian Club Competitions 1995/96". RSSSF. 22 December 2016. Archived from the original on 5 April 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    11. ^ Qayed, Mohammad (12 December 2002). "Saudi Arabia 1997/98". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 9 June 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    12. ^ Qayed, Mohammed (6 December 2006). "Saudi Arabia 2004/05". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 26 March 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
    13. ^ Stokkermans, Karel. "Saudi Arabia 2022/23". RSSSF. Archived from the original on 20 August 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.