Founded in 1955 as one of the founding members of the Saudi Pro League, the club has traditionally worn a yellow and blue home kit. The name "Al-Nassr" translates to "The Victory" in Arabic. Al-Nassr play their home matches in the 25,000-capacityAl-Awwal Park, having previously played in theKing Fahd International Stadium. Until 2020, Al-Nassr was operated by club members, but is now majority-owned by thePublic Investment Fund. One of the few Saudi clubs never relegated from the top division, Al-Nassr has large support in the Middle East and has a growing international fanbase. In 2024, Al-Nassr was estimated to be worth around $1 billion, making it one of the most valuable football clubs in Asia. The club's anthem is "Yalla Nassr" and its mascot is "Knight", symbolizing the historic knights ofNajd.
Al-Nassr is one of the most successful clubs in Saudi football: the club have won 48 trophies, including 10league titles, 5King Cups, and 3Crown Prince Cups. Al-Nassr has won 2 continental trophies 1Asian Cup Winners' Cups and 1Asian Super Cup. Al-Nassr became a dominant force in Saudi football in the 1990s and 2000s, securing multiple league and continental titles and its profile rose in the early 2020s after signing major international players, includingCristiano Ronaldo. Al-Nassr has deep rivalries with other clubs, with the most notable being theRiyadh derby againstAl-Hilal.
Al Nassr was established in 1955 by the Al-Ja'ba brothers. Training took place in an old playground at Gashlat Al-Shortah, west shirts. In addition to the Al-Ja'ba brothers, Ali and Al-Owais, PrinceAbdul Rahman bin Saud Al Saud became the head of Al Nassr, he spent more than 39 years as the president for 3 stints until his death. His love of the team made him accept the challenge of being the president of a second-division club and turning it into a champion, and therefore, he is known as Al-Nassr's Godfather. They were promoted to the first division in 1963. During the 1970s and 1980s, the club won oneCategorization League and threeSaudi Premier League titles, FiveKing's Cups, twoCrown Prince's Cups, and oneFederation Cup. The team's success was built around the "Saudi Golden Trio" ofMajed Abdullah,Fahd Al-Bishi andMohaisen Al-Jam'an.[3]
Picture for the team with trophies won in 1974Majed Ahmed Abdullah is Al Nassr's all-time leader in goals scored and appearances.
In the 1990s (year), Al Nassr managed to win two furtherSaudi Premier League titles in the 1993–1994 and 1994–1995 seasons, the 1990 King's Cup and the 1997–1998 Federation Cup. Towards the end ofMajed Abdullah's career, he still wasn't able to lift the ultimate prize inUAFA region; theArab Club Champions Cup while the other top clubs in Saudi already succeeded in doing this. Despite that, Al Nassr managed to triumph in the continental tournaments. The 37-year-old striker,Majed Abdullah at the time, managed to win twoGCC Club Cups, oneAsian Cup Winners' Cup and oneAsian Super Cup. Majed Abdullah announced his retirement on 12 April 1998 following Al-Nassr's win in the 1998 Asian Cup Winner's Cup againstSuwon Samsung Bluewings fromSouth Korea in front of70,000 fans in Riyadh. Majed retired at 39 years old as the all-time top scorer of the Saudi League with 189 goals and is also Al-Nassr's all-time top scorer with 260 goals, a record that was considered untouchable until the coming ofAbderrazak Hamdallah.[citation needed]
After becoming champion of theAsian Super Cup, Al-Nassr was eligible to represent theAFC region in the firstFIFA Club World Cup. In that championship Al-Nassr played againstCorinthians,Real Madrid andRaja Casablanca and finished 3rd in the group, the club became the first team to officially represent Asia in an international tournament, which was held in Brazil from 5 January to 14 January, in the year 2000. The nickname "The Global One (Al-Alami)" was obtained following their respective participation in the Club World Cup. Al Nassr won the FIFA Fair Play Award and 6th place following the end of the Club World Cup and was the first team in the world to win the award.[4]
After the Golden Trio's retirement, Al Nassr's fresh squad at the time made an impressive performance during their first run in theFIFA Club World Cup. The Club then went on to sign some internationally recognized players, such as Ivory Coast'sFadel Keïta and formerBarcelona Attacking MidfielderJulio César Baldivieso.[citation needed]
Despite the expensive signings at the time, Al-Nassr failed to keep their position in the league and soon received some major setbacks. Things got worse as the next season went by. In 2006–07, the club only managed to avoid relegation on their last day of the season, which prompted honorary members, includingMajed Abdullah, to intervene. Their plan was to begin an effective long-term plan to restructure the management this period was called the Great Setback as the club at the time lost its place in the top during this period rivals Al-Hilal got more wins against Al-Nassr then ever before and broke the record for most wins in the derby which was held by Al-Nassr for many years.[citation needed]
Al Nassr fans at theKing Fahd International Stadium in 2008 supporting the club despite not winning a trophy for almost ten years at the time
After a major overhaul of playing staff, Al Nassr went on to win the Federation Cup 2008 againstcity rivals,Al-Hilal. In the next season, Al Nassr made a record-breaking transfer by signing youngMohammad Al-Sahlawi fromAl-Qadsiah in 2009 for SR32 million ($8 million) fee, breakingYasser Al-Qahtani's record transfer to Al-Hilal from the same team as Sahlawi.[citation needed]
Newly reformed Al Nassr put lots of hope on their young striker's shoulders. In his first season with Al-Nassr, Al-Sahlawi scored 21 goals in 36 matches and received the Young Player of the Year award from STC. However, the club only finished third in 2009–10. Despite that, Al Nassr were eligible to secure a place in theAFC Champions League for the following season.[citation needed]
Their second match in the 2011 AFC Champions League were against Uzbekistan clubPakhtakor, which resulted in a 2–2 draw with the decisive goal coming fromBader Al-Mutawa, a loaned player from a Kuwaiti club who was also part of theKuwaiti military. In the second match againstEsteghlal, Al Nassr managed to secure their first 3 points by winning 2–1, withHussein Abdulghani scoring. In the third match, Al Nassr was defeated byAl-Sadd with them scoring 1 goal byLee Jung-Soo.[citation needed]
Once again Al Nassr was pitted against Al-Sadd fromQatar with Abdulghani clutching 1 goal to force a draw result. In the fifth match however, Al Nassr secured a big victory against Pakhtakor withSaud Hamood and Sahlawi each scoring 1 goal, while Al-Mutawa scored 2 goals. In the final group stage game, Al Nassr were beaten by Esteghlal 2–1 with Al-Mutawa scoring for the club again. Al Nassr narrowly avoided elimination by getting 2nd position in their group.[citation needed]
In the round of sixteen however, Al Nassr's dream to win a continental competition again since the time ofMajed Abdullah perished whenZob Ahan defeated Al Nassr 4–1, with Bader once again listing his name in goal chart. Shortly after the continental campaign was over, Bader chose to depart to Kuwait to return to his club and resume military duties. In his short time with Al Nassr, he managed to make a good record by scoring 5 goals, one of the top ten highest scorers in AFC during 2011.[citation needed]
In 2010–12, Al Nassr saw itself in the King's Cup. In the 2010–12 season, the Al Nassr coach,Francisco Maturana, aimed for the club to become the Saudi giant it once was. Once again Al Nassr were denied to become champions in the final of the Crown Prince Cup match, where Al-Hilal defeated them in a penalty shootout.[citation needed]
The 2010s marked the growth of football in most Asian countries, both in league quality and their national teams. The AFC Champions League also started to spark interest among football enthusiasts worldwide.[citation needed]
In the 2014–15 season, Al Nassr continued to defend their title as champions, winning the league. However, the team failed to achieve their treble after losing in the King's Cup final and only reaching the semi-final of the Crown Prince Cup. Many fans felt let down by the club after losing in the group stage of theAFC Champions League againstBunyodkor,Al-Duhail, andPersepolis.[citation needed]
Al-Sahlawi, who was 27 years old at the time, managed to score 25 goals from his 37 appearances that season. For these reasons, the coach was replaced by former Colombian goalkeeperRene Higuita. Even with him training the team, Al Nassr still failed to make an impact in theAFC Champions League. After being defeated byAl-Duhail andZob Ahan, Al Nassr finally defeated Bunyodkor in consecutive matches.[citation needed]
The start of the 2016–17 season marked the transfer of two Croatian players to the club:Ivan Tomecak andMarin Tomasov, who were loaned to Al Nassr.Abdullah Madu, a new center-back at the time, also began playing with the club. However, that season, the club only finished in 3rd position in the Pro League, behind their rivalAl-Ahli and city rivalAl-Hilal.[citation needed]
Al Nassr only finished second in the Crown Prince Cup that season, losing to Al Hilal once again. They were also runners-up to Al Ahli in the final of the King's Cup. Al Nassr failed to qualify for theAFC Champions League 2017 and theAFC Champions League 2018. In the 2015–16 season, Al-Sahlawi scored 10 goals in his 29 appearances. In the 2016–17 season, Al-Sahlawi scored 11 goals in 27 appearances, and in the next season, he scored 12 goals from 24 appearances.[citation needed]
Hamdallah, nicknamed "The Executioner," proved himself to be a menace when he made his debut againstAl-Qadsiah, making two assists. In his second match, he scored his first goal for the club againstAl-Taawoun. After this, Al-Sahlawi's position as the club's favorite striker began to shift toward Hamdallah as the formerChinese Super League star adapted to his teammates. The Moroccan forward broke records in the league since it became professional in 2007 and carried his team to qualify for the2019 AFC Champions League by defeatingFK AGMK.[citation needed]
In the 2019 AFC Champions League, Al Nassr secured second position in the group stage, just below Zob Ahan, and advanced past the round of sixteen with Hamdallah scoring. In the quarter-finals, Al Nassr was defeated byAl-Sadd 4–3. Hamdallah scored 4 goals in the 2019 AFC Champions League.[citation needed]
Despite a poor start due to a previous ankle injury, Hamdallah ended his first season in theSaudi Pro League as the top scorer, impressively scoring 34 goals. By this time, Hamdallah had completely replaced Al Sahlawi as the main striker.[citation needed]
In the 2018–19 season, he won the league title with his team and scored a record 34 goals, alongside his teammateNordin Amrabat. He scored in the final match againstAl-Batin. On 3 January 2019, Hamdallah scored his first hat-trick for the club againstAl-Jandal in the Round of 64 of the2019 King's Cup.[citation needed]
Ten days later, he scored a super hat-trick againstAl-Ansar. He scored consecutive super hat-tricks againstAl-Fayha in the Round of 16. On 27 April 2019, Hamdallah scored a double in a 4–2 loss in the semi-final againstAl-Ittihad in the2019 King Cup. By the end of 2019, Hamdallah managed to surpass several stars such asRobert Lewandowski andLionel Messi to become the world's top scorer, as noted byIFFHS, after reaching 57 goals in the year. Al Sahlawi also left the club to joinAl-Shabab.[citation needed]
Al Nassr was eligible to join the2020 AFC Champions after winning one of the domestic cups and the league. As they entered the group stage, Al Nassr drew 2–2 withAl-Sadd from Qatar, with Hamdallah scoring one of the two goals. In the next match againstAl-Ain from theUAE, Hamdallah scored again. In the third match, Hamdallah scored twice in a 2–0 win against Iranian clubSepahan, and in the next consecutive match against the same team, Hamdallah scored again and assisted his fullback teammateAbdullah Madu.[citation needed]
In the later match againstAl-Sadd, the team drew 1–1 before a loss due to a single goal fromKodjo Fo-Doh Laba ofAl-Ain. After reaching the knockout stage in the round of sixteen, Hamdallah scored the only goal in a 1–0 victory againstAl-Taawoun. The club advanced to the next stage. Al Nassr met their old rival, Al-Ahli, in the quarter-finals of the AFC Champions League. The Riyadh and Jeddah clubs have a long history of rivalry. Al Nassr won the "Classico" afterGonzalo Nicolas Martínez andAbdulfattah Asiri each scored a goal, with Hamdallah creating key moments for both.[citation needed]
However, Al Nassr lost in the semi-finals after a dramatic penalty shootout against Iranian clubPersepolis, ending their dream of lifting theAFC Champions League trophy. Despite this, Hamdallah managed to win the AFC Champions League golden boot, tying withJúnior Negrão with 7 goals, but winning due to having more assists. Despite this, the manager was dissatisfied with Hamdallah's performance.[citation needed]
On 23 November 2020, Al Nassr officially terminated the contract of strikerAbderrazak Hamdallah. Although his contract was terminated, Hamdallah was allowed to continue playing for the remainder of his contract. Meanwhile, Al Nassr began searching for a replacement for Hamdallah, with many European players who had previously joined theChinese Super League leaving due to stricter foreign player policies. This created an opportunity for other Asian clubs to acquire talented players at a lower cost.[citation needed]
Prior to joining Al Nassr,Talisca had won the 2019Chinese Super League title withGuangzhou Evergrande. Talisca officially joined Al Nassr on 17 May 2021 for a reported transfer fee of $9.5 million. On 8 June 2021,Vincent Aboubakar, aCameroonian striker, also signed for Al Nassr, with a reported transfer fee of $6 million. Both players made their debut for the club during the second half of the 2020–21Saudi Pro League season.[citation needed]
Talisca and Aboubakar made their debuts in a 4–1 victory overDamac on 13 August 2021, with each of them, along with Hamdallah, scoring once. In the following match, Talisca scored the only goal in a 1–0 win againstAl-Faisaly, further solidifying his place in the team. Hamdallah played his final match for the club in a 1–0 loss toAl-Ettifaq, in whichFilip Kiss scored the match-winning goal.[citation needed]
Jalolidin Masharipov, who had been on loan atShabab Al-Ahli in theUAE, returned to Al Nassr and made his first appearance in a 1–0 victory againstAl-Fateh on 1 January 2022. Despite the team's efforts under the leadership of managerMiguel Ángel Russo, Al Nassr was unable to secure any trophies that season, leading to Russo's departure and the appointment ofRudi Garcia as head coach.[citation needed]
Garcia oversaw a significant squad overhaul, bringing in new players, includingVillarreal full-backÁlvaro González Soberon, who was a free agent at the time. With a strengthened squad, Garcia aimed for a domestictreble, Talisca scored his first hat-trick for Al Nassr in a 4–1 away win againstAl-Raed, which helped him become the league's top scorer beforeCristiano Ronaldo's arrival.[citation needed]
On 30 December 2022, Al Nassr signedCristiano Ronaldo after the Portuguese player leftManchester United by mutual agreement. Ronaldo's contract runs for two-and-a-half years until summer 2025, with a total salary of €200 million per year, thought to be the highest ever paid to a professional footballer. He made an immediate impact on the global following of the club, with theirSocial media accounts growing to unbelievable numbers.[5] Al Nassr finished in second place in the2022–23 season.
On 28 July 2023, just one day after Al Nassr finished their Japan World Tour in friendly matches againstInter Milan andParis Saint-Germain the Al Nassr main squad faced their opponent,Al-Shabab in the group stage ofArab Club Champions Cup which resulted in a 0–0 draw. Al Nassr's success came later when facingUS Monastir, in which Ronaldo scored a goal in a 4–1 victory. In the final match in the group stage againstZamalek from Egypt, Ronaldo managed to equalize in the 87th minute securing the club their place in the next stage with a 1–1 draw.[citation needed]
On 6 August 2023, Al Nassr facedRaja Casablanca in the first one-legged knockout game, in which they won 3–1 to reach the next round. In the semifinal on 9 August 2023, Ronaldo secured their position in the final for the first time in the championship history after scoring a penalty againstAl-Shorta from Iraq winning 1–0.[citation needed]
On 12 August 2023, theArab Club Champions Cup final was played.Al Nassr who were 1–0 down toAl-Hilal picked up a red card in the 71st min. Just 3 minutes later,Cristiano Ronaldo scored, making it 1–1, sending the final to extra time. With just 10 men,Cristiano Ronaldo scored in the 98th minute to secure a 2–1 comeback againstAl-Hilal in thefinal. Ronaldo finished the top scorer of the tournament with 6 goals and won the Golden Boot, whileNawaf Al-Aqidi won the Golden Glove.[citation needed]
At the end of the 2023 year, Al Nassr were 2nd in the league, trailing onlyAl-Hilal. They finished 1st and unbeaten in theirAFC Champions League group drawing Saudi ClubAl-Fayha in the Round of 16.Talisca currently sits 1st in the golden boot standings of theAFC Champions League with 8 goals in just the group stage. Al Nassr has qualified for the semi-finals of the King's Cup after beating Saudi heavyweightsAl-Shabab 5–1.[citation needed]
TheIFFHS recognizedCristiano Ronaldo as the global top scorer, finishing the 2023 calendar year with 54 goals. As of February 2024, he has 30 goals in the first half of the season, scoring in every competition.[citation needed]
Before the second half of the season, Al Nassr were supposed to go on a tour to China facingShanghai Shenhua on 24 January andZhejiang Professional on 28 January but the tour was delayed and to be held in a future date. Al Nassr faced Saudi rivals,Al-Hilal and MLS sideInter Miami in theRiyadh Season Cup. The Cup ended with Al Nassr facing Al-Hilal on 8 February 2024. Al Nassr started the second half of the season with anAFC Champions League match against Saudi teamAl-Fayha on 12 January.[citation needed]
Al Nassr were knocked out of the2023–24 AFC Champions League byAl-Ain in the quarter finals, losing 1–0 in the first leg and winning 4–3 in the second leg, which led a 4–4 aggregate to penalties, which they lost 1–3.[citation needed]
They also lost theKing's Cup on penalties, and wereSaudi Super Cup semi finalists, and finished 2nd in the league with 82 points, the highest points in the club's history. Ronaldo won the golden boot and broke the record for most goals scored in a singleSPL season. However, fans were angry after losing every domestic title and getting knocked out of theChampions League at the start of the2024–25 season. The president Ibrahim al-Muhaidib resigned for not being given enough control over the club, and the club completed the signings ofMohamed Simakan fromRB Leipzig,Ângelo Gabriel fromChelsea, plusWesley andBento from theBrazilian Série A during the transfer window, as well as managerLuis Castro being replaced in September 2024 byStefano Pioli due to poor pre-season performances and a devastating 4-1 loss to rivals Al-Hilal. On 20 September, Al-Nassr announced the launching of a TV channel for the club under the name of "Nassr TV", in partnership withDAZN. The channel is the first of its kind in the country and the region.[6]
On January 1, 2025, Majid Al-Jam'an replaced Guido Fienga as the club's Executive Director, with Fienga becoming the club's advisor after public pressure from the supporters.[7]
In the winter window, Al-Nassr signedJhon Durán fromAston Villa and soldSeko Fofana for €20,000,000 to the French sideRennais,[8] making it the biggest sale to a team outside the Saudi Pro League, although higher sales have been made within the league itself.
On July 19, 2025,José Semedo was unveiled as the acting CEO for Al-Nassr, following the departure of Majid Al-Jam'an due to restructuring demanded by Cristiano Ronaldo[9] On July 28, 2025, Simão Coutinho was unveiled as the new Al-Nassr Sporting Director, following the departure ofFernando Hierro.[10] Later, they completed the signings of three crucial players:João Félix fromChelsea after a successful hijack againstBenfica,Iñigo Martínez on a free transfer fromFC Barcelona, andKingsley Coman fromBayern Munich. Al-Nassr ended up losing theSaudi Super Cup final to Al-Ahli on penalties despite efforts to improve the team further.
Al-Nassr (Arabic: النصر) is the Arabic word for "victory". While several football clubs across theArab world share this name, the Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr FC was the first to adopt it.
The club’s[11] logo features a stylized map of theArabian Peninsula, symbolizing the team's regional identity. The yellow color in the logo represents the sands of the Arabian deserts, while the blue symbolizes the surrounding bodies of water — theArabian Sea, theArabian Gulf, and theRed Sea.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Since thePIF acquired the club, the president has become more of an honorary figure, attending formal events and honoring the winners in various sectors of the club. The president no longer holds real decision-making power, with the last president to truly hold such authority being the 16th president. The current president can only advise the executive director, who now holds all decision-making authority.[25]
Al-Nassr Football Club has won a total of 48 official championships, making it one of the most successful clubs inSaudi Arabian football history. The club holds various domestic and international records and has consistently been a dominant force in the region.[26][27][28]
The club made history by becoming the first Asian club to participate in theFIFA Club World Cup, competing in the inaugural edition of the tournament in2000. On the continental level, the club has reached four Asian finals, winning two and finishing as runners-up in two.
^Founded in 1967 as the Asian Champion Club Tournament, later the Asian Club Championship, then the AFC Champions League, and finally the AFC Champions League Elite.
^Note: The top tier of Saudi football has undergone several rebrandings over the years. Al-Nassr has won a total of ten top-flight league titles across these eras: five Saudi Premier League titles, three Saudi Pro League titles, one Categorization League title, and one His Majesty's League title.
_Persepolis_F.C._v_Al_Nassr_FC%2c_19_September_2023_14_(cropped).jpg)
