Big-Name Player Transfers to Saudi Pro League Revealed: Lucrative contracts continue to allure elite players to join the Saudi Pro League.
Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante signed with defending champions Al Ittihad, while Edouard Mendy and Kalidou Koulibaly inked with Al Ahli and Al Hilal, respectively. Since then, transfer activity has continued.
Marcelo Brozovic has joined Cristiano Ronaldo at Al Nassr, Roberto Firmino has joined Al Ahli on a free transfer after leaving Liverpool, and Serbian superstar Sergej Milinkovic-Savic has accepted a sensational move to Al Hilal.
The Liverpool connection will be present elsewhere in the Saudi Pro League next season, as Fabinho moves to Al Ittihad and Jordan Henderson joins former Reds and England captain Steven Gerrard at Al Ettifaq. Now, Manchester City’s Riyad Mahrez has joined Leicester.
Al Hilal’s sensational transfer agreement with Paris Saint-Germain to acquire Neymar, the holder of the world transfer record, has been the most significant move thus far.
The Sporting News examines the most significant transfers to Saudi Arabia to date.
Big-Name Player Transfers to Saudi Pro League Revealed: Star departs for Saudi Arabia
Anderson Talisca was among the first notable players to enter the Saudi Pro League. After some time in China, he relocated to Al Nassr.
After the 2022 FIFA World Cup, when he left Manchester United to join Al Nassr, Cristiano Ronaldo helped the league acquire a lot more traction. He helped them acquire a great deal more viewers and demonstrated to the Saudi Pro League hierarchy that they can attract major players. Sadio Mane, acquired by Al Nassr from Bayern Munich, has since joined him.
Benzema, winner of the Ballon d’Or, will earn £84m ($107m) annually for three years at Al Ittihad. The World Cup champion Kante will reportedly earn £67.6m ($86m) annually over the course of his four-year contract.
In June, Al Hilal’s £47,1 million ($60 million) acquisition of Ruben Neves from Premier League club Wolves established a new transfer record for the league, which was subsequently surpassed by former Barcelona winger Malcom.
The Brazilian international completed his transfer from Paris to Riyadh for a reported £76.9 million (approximately $97 million).
| Player | New Club | Transfer fee | Date Joined |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neymar Jr | Al Hilal | £76.9m ($97.8m) | August. 2023 |
| Habib Diallo | Al Shabab | £15.3m ($19.4m) | August, 2023 |
| Fabinho | Al Ittihad | £35.9m ($45.6m) | August, 2023 |
| Roger Ibanez | Al Ahli | £25.6m ($32.6m) | August, 2023 |
| Franck Kessie | Al Ahli | £10.6m ($13.4m) | August, 2023 |
| Sadio Mane | Al Nassr | £24m ($30m) | August, 2023 |
| Allan Saint-Maximin | Al Ahli | £23m ($29.3m) | July, 2023 |
| Riyad Mahrez | Al Ahli | £30m ($38.6m) | July, 2023 |
| Jordan Henderson | Al Ettifaq | £12m ($15.6m) | July, 2023 |
| Malcom | Al Hilal | £51.5m ($66.9m) | July, 2023 |
| Romain Saiss | Al Sadd | £2.2m ($2.8m) | July, 2023 |
| Alex Telles | Al Nassr | Free | July, 2023 |
| Seko Fofana | Al Nassr | £21.6m ($27.8m) | July, 2023 |
| Sergej Milinkovic-Savic | Al Hilal | £34.2m ($44.6m) | July, 2023 |
| Roberto Firmino | Al Ahli | Free | July, 2023 |
| Marcelo Brozovic | Al Nassr | £15.4m ($19.6m) | July, 2023 |
| Jota | Al Ittihad | £25m ($31.7m) | July, 2023 |
| Edouard Mendy | Al Ahli | £16m ($20.2m) | June, 2023 |
| Karim Benzema | Al Ittihad | Free | June, 2023 |
| N’Golo Kante | Al Ittihad | Free | June, 2023 |
| Ruben Neves | Al Hilal | £47.1m ($60m) | June, 2023 |
| Kalidou Koulibaly | Al Hilal | £15.7m ($20m) | June, 2023 |
| Cristiano Ronaldo | Al Nassr | Free | January, 2023 |
| Anderson Talisca | Al Nassr | £6.9m ($8.8m) | July, 2021 |
Other personalities associated with the Saudi Arabia transfer
Fabrizio Romano reports that Al-Hilal have made a proposal of €300 million (£259.2 million/$332.6 million) for Paris Saint-Germain talisman Kylian Mbappé. The French titans are willing to sell the France captain if he does not extend his contract, which expires in 2024, and his arrival would elevate the level of transfer activity.
Aleksandar Mitrovic, who scored 14 Premier League goals in 2022/23, has not trained on Fulham’s US tour because he wishes to join Al-Hilal, who reportedly made two unsuccessful bids for the Cottagers’ leading scorer.
Fulham received improved news regarding manager Marco Silva, who stated he was “100% committed” to the club despite Al-Ahli’s €40 million (£34.6 million) two-year offer.
Former AC Milan and Valencia head coach Gennaro Gattuso has declined the offer, despite being explicitly contacted by Saudi Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman.
Big-Name Player Transfers to Saudi Pro League Revealed: International stars on Saudi Pro League teams
- Al Ittihad: Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kante, Romarinho, Jota, Fabinho
- Al Nassr: Cristiano Ronaldo, Anderson Talisca, David Ospina, Marcelo Brozovic, Alex Telles, Seko Fofana, Sadio Mane
- Al Hilal: Ruben Neves, Moussa Marega, Kalidou Koulibaly, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Malcom, Neymar Jr
- Al Shabab: Ever Banega, Grzegorz Krychowiak, Habib Diallo
- Al Fateh: Cristian Tello
- Abha: Felipe Caicedo
- Al Ahli: Edouard Mendy, Roberto Firmino, Riyad Mahrez, Allan Saint-Maximin, Roger Ibanez. Franck Kessie
- Al Sadd: Romain Saiss
