Sport in Saudi Arabia Championship and has also attracted NBA-players such as Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. Rugby union in Saudi Arabia is a minor but growing sport, which has been played for several decades in the Kingdom. Many of the local rugby clubs date back to the late 1970s. Ice hockey is also a minor sport but it has not been popular in Saudi Arabia, which has been played its first game in 2010 during the Gulf Ice Hockey Championship. Professional wrestling has been a recognizable minor sport in Saudi Arabia. The country has hosted one event by the U.S.-based promotion, WWE in Jeddah dubbed the
Professional football (gridiron) USFL executive James F. "Jim" Foster began work on a brand new variant of football. Known as "arena football", the sport was played on a much shorter 50-yard field and was built heavily on a high-scoring offensive game. After two test games, he launched a professional league, the Arena Football League, in 1987. The AFL began its 24th season in 2011, and is currently the United States' second longest running professional football league ever, after the NFL. The AFL also had a minor league, AF2, which ran for 10 seasons, from 2000 to 2009. The Arena Football League season runs