Saudi Arabia’s Sports Sector Is Becoming a Procurement Case Study for the World

Article Highlights

• Saudi Arabia's sports sector, projected to reach $22.4 billion by 2030, is expanding beyond infrastructure into media, broadcasting, sponsorship, fan engagement, and sports technology.
• Saudi is increasingly using mixed procurement and financing models, including public-private partnership (PPP) structures for long-term facility development and operations.
• The scale and pace of the current pipeline are making early market presence in Saudi particularly important for international companies seeking access to contracts and partnerships.

The scale of the current project pipeline in Saudi Arabia's sports sector is turning sports into a major entry point

Saudi Arabia's sports sector has become one of the most active and investment-driven sectors within the Kingdom's broader economic transformation.

As project timelines accelerate and competition intensifies, companies that set up a business in Saudi Arabia early are significantly better positioned to access contracts and secure a foothold in one of the region’s largest procurement ecosystems.

A National Sports Infrastructure Program Running at Scale

Saudi Arabia’s sports infrastructure program is unfolding at an unprecedented scale, with activity spread across multiple cities, entities, and financing models.

This expansion in physical infrastructure is closely mirrored by a rapid scaling of the Kingdom’s international sports calendar.

Since 2019, Saudi Arabia has hosted more than 100 major sporting events across more than 40 disciplines. This includes flagship events such as the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix in Jeddah, LIV Golf tournaments, heavyweight boxing title fights in Riyadh, the Diriyah Tennis Cup, and stages of the Dakar Rally.

From a policy perspective, growth in Saudi Arabia’s sports sector is underpinned by a national program, including the National Gaming and Esports Strategy. These programs provide a coordinated framework for infrastructure development, driving a growing pipeline of major project awards and procurement activity.

For instance, the Jeddah Central Development Company (JCDC) awarded an estimated SR6.7 billion ($1.8 billion) contract to Beijing-headquartered China Railway Construction Corporation alongside local contractor SAMA Construction for Trading & Contracting to deliver the Jeddah Central stadium project, with design led by GMP Architects in partnership with Khatib and Alami.

Meanwhile, in Dammam, Aramco awarded a SR3.7 billion ($1 billion) stadium contract to BESIX and Albawani, while Qiddiya Investment Company awarded the Prince Mohammed bin Salman Stadium to FCC Construcción and Nesma & Partners, also valued at around SR3.7 billion.

At the same time, Saudi is expanding sports investment through parallel private sector-led developments.

In early 2026, the Kingdom announced the SR1 billion ($267 million) Dammam Sports City project during the Sports Investment Forum in Riyadh, a development backed by the Sharqia Development Authority, Dammam Valley Co., and the Ministry of Investment.

The project reflects a broader shift in sports infrastructure investment, with growing emphasis on mixed-use developments and privately backed sports ecosystems.

Saudi is also introducing public-private partnership (PPP) models in stadium delivery, including a 20–30 year DBFOM structure for the Prince Faisal bin Fahd Sports City redevelopment, signaling a shift toward long-term private sector participation in core sports infrastructure.

FIFA World Cup 2034: The Catalyst for a New Procurement Cycle

The selection of Saudi Arabia as a host of the 2034 FIFA World Cup has set off a large-scale procurement program defined by tight timelines and rapid delivery requirements, reshaping how infrastructure is planned, tendered, and executed across the Kingdom.

At the center of this effort is a nationwide stadium and venue development pipeline tied directly to FIFA hosting requirements. The fixed deadlines act as non-negotiable catalysts that compress procurement cycles and accelerate delivery decisions across the entire ecosystem.

The 2034 World Cup program requires a minimum of 14 all-seater stadiums, including at least one capable of seating 92,000 spectators for the opening and final matches.

In fact, Saudi Arabia’s bid includes 11 entirely new stadiums, bringing the total to 15 venues across the Kingdom. Eight will be located in Riyadh, four in Jeddah, and one each in Al-Khobar, Abha, and NEOM.

Beyond the main stadiums, 134 training sites are planned nationwide, of which 73 are new builds. In January 2026, the Ministry of Sport issued a prequalification notice for 68 of these sites, confirming that procurement activity is already underway, moving beyond the planning phase into execution.

Footballco and the Demand-Side Expansion of the Sports Economy

This infrastructure build-out is being matched by fast-growing demand across Saudi Arabia's sports sector, particularly in content, media, and fan engagement.

In the run-up to the FIFA World Cup, global companies are embedding themselves in Saudi Arabia to benefit from the growing commercial opportunities emerging across the sports sector.

Chief among these is Footballco, the UK-headquartered football media company behind GOAL and KOOORA, which now reaches more than 14 million people in Saudi Arabia every month, reflecting the scale of existing fan engagement and commercial opportunity in the market.

In 2025, the company established its regional headquarters (RHQ) in Riyadh as part of its expansion process facilitated by AstroLabs, citing the importance of physical presence in accelerating market access and long-term integration into the Kingdom’s football ecosystem.

Its rapid footprint expansion highlights a broader shift in the sector. The same sporting calendar driving stadium construction is also generating sustained demand across media, broadcasting, sponsorship activation, data platforms, and fan engagement technologies.

Saudi Arabia’s sports sector is projected to reach $22.4 billion by 2030, and companies operating in adjacent industries are increasingly treating local presence not as optional but as a prerequisite for participation in a rapidly institutionalizing ecosystem.