Al-Hilal FC

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"Al-Hilal" redirects here. For other uses, see Al-Hilal (disambiguation).
Al-Hilal newlogo.png
Full name Al-Hilal Saudi Football Club

Al-Za'eem (The Boss)

The Blue Waves
Founded 1957
(as the Olympic Club)
Ground King Fahd Stadium,
Ground Capacity 67,000
Chairman Abdulrahman bin Musa'ad
Manager Laurențiu Reghecampf
League Saudi Premier League
2013–14 Saudi Premier League, 2nd
Website Club home page

Al-Hilal Saudi Football Club (Arabic: نادي الهلال‎; The Crescent), also known simply as Al-Hilal, is a Saudi Arabian professional football team based in the country's capital of Riyadh. It holds 55 official championship since its founding in 1957[1] (a record 40 national championships, as well as a record 6 Asian championships, and 7 Arab and Arabian Gulf Championships). Al-Hilal has a reputation for being the most widely supported club in Saudi Arabia.

Among the club's most famous players were Yousuf Al-Thunayan and Sami Al-Jaber; of the Saudi Arabian national football team, and goalkeeper Mohamed Al-Deayea, who is also known as "The Octopus". Al-Deayea is the former world record holder for most international appearances by a male football player, he was chosen to be Asia's goalkeeper of the century in 2000. The very well known Brazilian, Rivelino, also played for Al-Hilal from 1978 to 1981.

The nickname of Al-Hilal is "Al-Zaeem", which means "The Boss" came from the club's leading position in Asia and in Saudi Arabia.[2] With this clear lead, the IFFHS ranked Al-Hilal as the Asian Club of the 20th Century.[3]


Club crest

Al-Hilal Club was originally known as the Olympic Club during its founding by Abdul Rahman Bin Saeed on 16 October 1957. The club's name was changed on 3 December 1958 by King Saud after he attended a tournament that was contested between the Olympic Club, Al-Shabab, Al-Riyadh and El-Kawkab clubs.[4]


Domestic Competitions[edit]

  • Saudi ArabiaSaudi Premier League
    • 1 (13) : 1977, 1979, 1985, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1996, 1998, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2010, 2011 (Record)
    • 2 (12) : 1980, 1981, 1983, 1987, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2013, 2014
Al-Hilal champion 2010
  • Saudi King's cup
    • Cup Winner.png (6) : 1961, 1964, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1989
    • Cup Finalist.png (6) : 1963, 1968, 1977, 1981, 1985, 1987
  • Crown Prince Cup
    • Cup Winner.png (12) : 1964, 1995, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 (Record)
    • Cup Finalist.png (3) : 1957, 1998, 2014
  • Saudi Federation cup Known as (Prince Faisal Bin Fahad Cup)
    • Cup Winner.png (8) : 1987, 1990, 1993, 1996, 2000, 2005, 2006, 2014 (Record)
    • Cup Finalist.png (6) : 1986, 2002, 2003, 2008, 2010, 2012

Note: on the 2010/2011 zain Saudi league al hilal made history by finishing the season undefeated and became the 2nd Saudi team who won the league without any defeat


Arabian Gulf[edit]




Saudi's teams are limited to four players without Saudi citizenship.

First-team squad[edit]


No. Position Player
1 Saudi Arabia GK Khalid Sharhili
2 Saudi Arabia DF Sultan Al-Bishi
3 Saudi Arabia DF Yahya Al-Musalem
4 Saudi Arabia DF Abdullah Al-Zori
5 Saudi Arabia MF Abdulatif Al-Ghanam
6 Saudi Arabia MF Mohammed Al-Qarni
7 Brazil MF Thiago Neves
8 Romania MF Mihai Pintilii
9 Saudi Arabia MF Hamad Al-Hamad
10 Saudi Arabia MF Mohammad Al-Shalhoub (vice-captain)
11 Saudi Arabia MF Abdullaziz Al-Dosari
12 Saudi Arabia DF Yasser Al-Shahrani
13 Saudi Arabia MF Salman Al-Faraj
14 Saudi Arabia MF Saud Kariri
15 Saudi Arabia FW Nasser Al-Shamrani
16 Saudi Arabia FW Yousef Al-Salem
17 Saudi Arabia DF Abdullah Al Hafith
No. Position Player
18 Saudi Arabia MF Abdullah Otayf
20 Saudi Arabia FW Yasser Al-Qahtani (captain)
23 South Korea DF Kwak Tae-Hwi
24 Saudi Arabia MF Nawaf Al Abed
26 Brazil DF Digao
27 Saudi Arabia GK Fahad Al-Thunayan
28 Saudi Arabia GK Abdullah Al-Sudairy
29 Saudi Arabia MF Salem Al-Dossari
30 Saudi Arabia GK Fayz Al-Sabiay
31 Saudi Arabia DF Mohammed Al-Berik
33 Saudi Arabia DF Sultan Al-Deayea
35 Saudi Arabia GK Mohammed Al-Waked
36 Saudi Arabia FW Khaled Al-Kaebi
39 Saudi Arabia MF Abdulellah Al-Fadhl
46 Saudi Arabia DF Ahmed Sharahily
49 Saudi Arabia DF Abdulla Al-Shamekh

Out on loan[edit]


No. Position Player
Senegal DF Kader Mangane (at Erciyesspor)
Saudi Arabia DF Hassan Khairat (at Al-Raed)
Saudi Arabia MF Hosam Al-Harthi (at Al-Raed)

Reserve squad[edit]


No. Position Player
Saudi Arabia GK Faisel Al-Shahrani
Saudi Arabia GK Saad Al-Saleh
Saudi Arabia GK Mohamed Al-Waked
Saudi Arabia DF Mohammed Al-Shaman
Saudi Arabia DF Sweed Al-Bishi
Saudi Arabia DF Sultan Al-Deayea
Saudi Arabia DF Abdulkarim Al-Qahtani
Saudi Arabia DF Mohanad Al-Rasheed
Saudi Arabia MF Saad Al-Otaian
No. Position Player
Saudi Arabia MF Abdulelah Al-Fadhl
Saudi Arabia MF Abdulaziz Al-Swailem
Saudi Arabia MF Bader Al-Marshedi
Saudi Arabia MF Abdulwahab Al-Fridi
Saudi Arabia MF Khalid Al-Kaabi
Saudi Arabia FW Abdulrahman Al-Sanea
Saudi Arabia FW Abdulilah Ibrahim
Saudi Arabia FW Abdulaziz Al-Sultan
Saudi Arabia FW Ahmed Al-Bargi

Club Facilities[edit]

In 2009, a new indoor camp was opened. It contains 25 rooms, meeting rooms, smart room for lectures, library, eating room, living rooms, a big salon and a medical clinic. It also has entertainment corners for video games, table tennis, Billiards, table football and many others. There are 2 training fields for the senior team.


Current Technical Staff[edit]

Position Name
Manager Romania Laurențiu Reghecampf
Technical Assistant Romania Cristian Țermure
Technical Assistant Romania Anton Petrea
Physical Fitness Coach Germany Thomas Neubert
Goalkeeping Coach Romania Florin Tene
Medical Director France Jean-Marcel Ferret
Physiotherapist Romania Ovidiu Kurti
Translator TBD
Reserve Team Coach TBD


Current board of directors and administrators[edit]

Abdulrahman bin Musa'ad is the current President.
Office Name
President Abdulrahman Bin Musa'ad
Vice-president Mohammed Alhmidani


Season Div. Pos. Pl. W D L GS GA GD P Domestic cups AFC Other Competitions Top scorer Manager
2000/01 SPL 3 22 14 5 3 35 15 +20 47 CPC ASC Quarterfinals ARWC ASC Romania Ilie Balaci
2001/02 SPL 1 22 14 7 1 54 17 +37 49 PFC ACWC Winner ARWC Portugal Artur Jorge
2002/03 SPL 5 22 11 8 3 28 18 +10 41 CPC PFC ACL Group Stage ASC H.Al-Ali 13 Romania Ilie Balaci
2003/04 SPL 3 22 12 4 6 40 18 +22 40 CPC PFC ACL Group Stage Ceesay 16 Netherlands Aad de Mos
2004/05 SPL 2 22 13 6 3 41 21 +20 45 CPC PFC ARCL Al-Jaber 12 Brazil Marcos Paquetá
2005/06 SPL 2 22 13 5 4 41 21 +20 44 CPC PFC ACL Group Stage Camacho 14 Brazil Marcos Paquetá
2006/07 SPL 2 22 17 2 3 38 15 +23 53 CPC ACL Quarter-final Al-Qahtani 13 Portugal José Peseiro
2007/08 SPL 1 22 14 6 2 36 13 +23 48 SCC CPC PFC GCC Al-Qahtani 16 Romania Cosmin Olăroiu
2008/09 SPL 2 22 15 5 2 41 9 +32 50 SCC CPC PFC ACL Round of 16 Al-Qahtani 13 Romania Cosmin Olăroiu
2009–10 ZPL 1 22 18 2 2 56 18 +38 56 SCC CPC PFC ACL Semi-finals Al-Qahtani 19 Belgium Eric Gerets
2010/11 ZPL 1 26 19 7 0 52 18 +34 64 SCC CPC ACL Round of 16 Al-Qahtani 11 Argentina Gabriel Calderon

Div. = Division; SPL = Saudi Premier League; ZPL = Zain Professional League; Pos. = Position; Pl = Match played; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Lost
GS = Goal Scored; GA = Goal Against; GD = Goal difference P = Points
SCC = Champions Cup; CPC = Crown Prince Cup; PFC = Prince Faisal Cup
ARCL = Arab Champions League; ARWC = Arab Cup Winners' Cup; ACL = AFC Champions League; GCC = Gulf Club Champions Cup;ASC = Asian Super Cup
Colors: Gold = winner; Silver = runner-up; Bronze = third,Semi-final .

Award winners[edit]

Asian Footballer of the Year
Asia‘s best Goalkeeper of the Century by IFFHS
Arabian Footballer of the Year

Managerial history[edit]

Brazil Zagallo is one of the best coaches that went through the history of Al Hilal


Name From To Championships (official)
Saudi Arabia Mr. Abdul Rahman Bin Saeed 1957 1965 3
Saudi Arabia Mr. Abdulrahman Al-Hamdan 1965 1966 ×
Saudi Arabia Mr. Abdul Rahman Bin Saeed 1966 1970 ×
Saudi Arabia Mr. Faisal Al-Shehail 1970 1972 ×
Saudi Arabia Prince Abdullah Bin Nasser 1972 1976 ×
Saudi Arabia Prince Hazloul bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud 1976 1978 1
Saudi Arabia Prince Abdullah Bin Nasser 1978 1982 2
Saudi Arabia Prince Hazloul bin Abdul-Aziz Al Saud 1982 1983 1
Saudi Arabia Prince Abdullah Bin Saad 1983 1990 9
Saudi Arabia Mr. Abdul Rahman Bin Saeed 1990 1992 1
Saudi Arabia MR. Mohammed Mufti 1992 1993 1
Saudi Arabia Prince Abdullah Bin Saeed 1993 1994 ×
Saudi Arabia Prince Khalid Bin Mohammed 1994 1996 4
Saudi Arabia Prince Bandar Bin Mohammad 1997 2000 9
Saudi Arabia Prince Saud Bin Turki 2000 2003 6
Saudi Arabia Prince Abdullah Bin Musa'ad 2003 2004 1
Saudi Arabia Prince Mohammed Bin Faisal 2004 2008 7
Saudi Arabia Abdulrahman Bin Musa'ad 2008 Present 7

Finance and sponsorship[edit]


Mobily is the main sponsor of Al-Hilal FC, and as part of the sponsorship deal, their logo is displayed on the front of the club's shirts and a plethora of other merchandise. The Mobily deal was announced by Al-Hilal FC President prince Abdul-Rahman Bin Musaid Al-Saud on 14 October 2008, and is worth a Saudi record SAR 517 million, to be paid over six years (SAR 69.1 million per year).

If the team wins any trophy, they will get SAR 3 million for each one (USD 800,000). Al-Hilal will get 60% of any other sponsor that want to sponsor the team, with Mobily's agreement, 20% of football match tickets sold, 50% of Mobily Al-Hilal txt message service profit. Al-Hilal will get SAR 10 million if the number of subscribers in Mobily's Al-Hilal service reaches 200,000 and another 10 million if they reach 400,000 subscribers. Al-Hilal will get 10% of each mobile package sold under the Al-Hilal name (such as blue wave package) and 40% of the club membership fees. The minimum net income from Mobily deal is SAR 75 million per year (USD 20 million/year).


Like most professional teams all over the world, Al-Hilal and Mobily have introduced a membership card (Hilali) for fans to connect with their club. Fans are now able to join the Hilal membership scheme for the clubs starting 2012–2013 season onwards. Hilali membership benefits includes VIP tickets to all Al-Hilal home and away matches, using the club facilities,meeting with players monthly and discounts at Al-Hilal Mobili stores.

Al-Hilal stores[edit]

Al-Hilal has a chain of luxury retail stores that sell the club's products. The first branch opened in February 2011 on the most expensive commercial street in Riyadh at a cost of SAR 15 million (USD 4 million). It is the first store from any Saudi club, and the biggest club store in the Middle East. In the first week of opening, sales surpassed SAR 1 million (USD 266,000). Mobily plans to cover the kingdom's main cities with seven branches by the end of 2012.Currently there are 3 branches, (with Riyadh), Khobar's branch has opened in Jan 2012 then Jeddah branch has opened in Apr 2012. The stores offer thousands of high quality products including clothes, accessories, children toys and many other products.

The stores' profits currently go to Mobily only. After the investment cost is covered they will share the profit with the club.

Television match broadcasting rights[edit]

Al-Hilal receives SR 4.5 million per year (USD 1.2 million/year) from the Saudi Arabia Football Federation as the federation sell the complete matches' right in one package and all the clubs in the Saudi Professional League share the revenue equally. The income may increase dramatically in near future as clubs will have the rights to sell their own matches' broadcasting rights.

Other income sources[edit]

The club's president and other board members pay any extra money required to run the club as the total expenses of the club in recent seasons surpassed SR 140 million (USD 38 million). This increase in expenses is due to the high level foreign and national players the club signed with such as Thiago Neves, Mirel Rădoi, Christian Wilhelmsson, Osama Hawsawi, Youssef El-Arabi and others.

Charity and philanthropy[edit]

Special seats have been allocated for the disabled to watch the training. Twenty-five percent of the income of tickets sold goes to charities. Players and board members arrange and attend social activities for charities during Eid and other holidays.


External links[edit]

Preceded by
Champions of Asia
Succeeded by
PAS Tehran
Preceded by
Júbilo Iwata
Champions of Asia
Succeeded by
Suwon Samsung Bluewings
South Korea
Preceded by
Shonan Bellmare
Asian Cup Winners' Cup
Runner up: Nagoya Grampus

Succeeded by
Al Nassr
Saudi Arabia
Preceded by
Saudi Arabia
Asian Cup Winners' Cup
Runner up: Jeonbuk Hyundai

Succeeded by