MILESTONE
Tournament lauded as important step for sports in Kingdom
Saudi Arabia achieves yet another milestone by organizing its firstever Women’s Football League tournament.
Saudi Arabia made history with its first Women’s Football League tournament kicking off on Tuesday morning, with 24 teams from three of the Kingdom’s major cities.
The teams will be battling it out for unprecedented bragging rights, a shiny championship cup, and a prize of SR500,000 ($133,000). Taking place in Jeddah, Riyadh, and Dammam, the tournament has been lauded as an important step for the Saudi sports world, with many industry greats throwing their support behind the movement and discussing the event’s importance.
Abdullah Alyami, Saudi football coach and sports reporter, called it a “positive step” and said that he expects many more women to participate in future tournaments. “This is a very happy day for all athletes, be they male or female. And based on what we’ve seen, and how beloved the sport of football is all over the Kingdom, I believe we will see many more of our sisters getting involved in professional sports,” he said.
Saudi sports reporter Riyan Al-Jidani shared a supportive message to the participating women in the tournament on his Twitter account as the tournament began. “To all my dear sisters participating in the Women’s Football League, your success in the tournament is a step in the right direction toward our dream of universality and representing our homeland to the outside world. Raising the flag on the field is a glory and pride,” he said.
Despite the tournament being delayed, as the pandemic prevented play beginning in March as originally planned, the players could only be held down for so long. Some even made use of the extra time, such as Maram Al-Butairi, general manager and head coach of the Eastern Flames FC, who are based in Dammam. “We started preparations early, and the delay due to the pandemic actually worked in our favor. We were able to take more than two months to prepare for the tournament,” she said.
While none of the matches are to be broadcast, it did not stop fans from expressing their excitement on social media about the tournament. Wejdan Al-Shammary, who grew up playing sports in school, said that she would have tried for a team “in a heartbeat” if she had been just a few years younger. Najla Ahmed, a 16-year-old from Riyadh who plays on her school’s football team, said that she was going to try for one of the local football clubs next year.
“Football is just the beginning. I would love to see more focus on other sports, as well. Basketball, tennis, maybe even competitive swimming,” said Al-Shammary.