The Most Famous

SOCCER PLAYERS from Saudi Arabia

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This page contains a list of the greatest Saudi Arabian Soccer Players. The pantheon dataset contains 21,273 Soccer Players, 66 of which were born in Saudi Arabia. This makes Saudi Arabia the birth place of the 49th most number of Soccer Players behind Ireland, and Tunisia.

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Saudi Arabian Soccer Players of all time. This list of famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Saudi Arabian Soccer Players.

Photo of Majed Abdullah

1. Majed Abdullah (b. 1959)

With an HPI of 57.61, Majed Abdullah is the most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 34 different languages on wikipedia.

Majed Ahmed Abdullah (Arabic: ماجد احمد عبد الله; born 11 January 1959) is a Saudi Arabian former professional footballer who played as a striker for Al-Nassr and the Saudi Arabia national team. He is the all-time leading goal scorer for Saudi Arabia with 72 goals in 117 games. At the club level, he is the record goal scorer for Al-Nassr and the all-time top scorer of the Saudi Pro League. He was often referred to by his nickname "The Arabian Pelé". Majed Abdullah is regarded as one of the greatest Western Asian strikers of all time. He was nominated for IFFHS Asia's Player of the Century, finishing third place. He spent his entire club career at Al-Nassr, and scored 189 league goals in a twenty-one-year career. During this time, Al-Nassr established themselves as one of the dominant forces in Saudi and Asian football. With Abdullah leading the attack, Al-Nassr won five League titles and four King Cup titles as well as the 1997–98 Asian Cup Winners' Cup. Abdullah also finished as the Saudi League top scorer six times throughout his career. Majed Abdullah retired from football in 1998, after Al-Nassr's Asian Cup Winners' Cup Final victory over Suwon Samsung Bluewings. His success was not limited to the domestic stage. In 1984 Saudi Arabia qualified for their first-ever global international tournament at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. Abdullah scored their only goal as Saudi Arabia lost all three group games. International success did come in 1984, however, in the Asian Cup in Singapore. Saudi Arabia beat China 2–0 in the final to take the title for the first time, with Abdullah scoring the second goal. Four years later in 1988, he would score twice in the tournament in Qatar as the Saudi team retained the title by beating South Korea on penalties.

Photo of Saeed Al-Owairan

2. Saeed Al-Owairan (b. 1967)

With an HPI of 55.23, Saeed Al-Owairan is the 2nd most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Saeed Ali Al-Owairan Al-Dossari (Arabic: سعيد علي العويران الدوسري‎; born 19 August 1967) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward for Saudi Pro League club Al-Shabab. Widely considered to be one of the greatest Asian footballers of all time, Al-Owairan is renowned for his goal against Belgium in the 1994 World Cup, which was considered the sixth-best in FIFA's Goal of the Century rankings. He scored 283 goals across his 13-year career.

Photo of Sami Al-Jaber

3. Sami Al-Jaber (b. 1972)

With an HPI of 52.30, Sami Al-Jaber is the 3rd most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 34 different languages.

Sami Abdullah Al-Jaber (Arabic: سامي الجابر; born 11 December 1972) is a Saudi Arabian football manager and former professional player who played as a striker. He spent the entirety of his career with Al-Hilal, apart from a five-month loan to English club Wolverhampton Wanderers. Al-Jaber is his country's second highest international goal-scorer with 46 goals in 156 internationals from 1992 to 2006. He appeared in four consecutive FIFA World Cup tournaments, from 1994 to 2006, scoring in three of them. He was also a member of the Saudi squad which won the AFC Asian Cup in 1996. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Saudi footballers ever.

Photo of Mohamed Al-Deayea

4. Mohamed Al-Deayea (b. 1972)

With an HPI of 50.12, Mohamed Al-Deayea is the 4th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 31 different languages.

Mohamed Abdullaziz Al-Deayea (Arabic: محمد عبد العزيز الدعيع; born 2 August 1972), also known as Mohammed Deayea al-Shammari, is a Saudi Arabian former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He participated in four FIFA World Cups for the Saudi Arabia national team and earned a total of 173 officially recognised caps. Al-Deayea played for al-Tai FC and al-Hilal SFC and was represented in all Saudi national teams. He is considered one of the prominent goalkeepers in the history of Saudi sports.

Photo of Salem Al-Dawsari

5. Salem Al-Dawsari (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 47.67, Salem Al-Dawsari is the 5th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 42 different languages.

Salem Mohammed Shafi Al-Dawsari (Arabic: سالم محمد شافي الدوسري; born 19 August 1991) is a Saudi Arabian professional footballer who plays as a winger for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal, whom he captains, and the Saudi Arabia national team.

Photo of Salman Al-Faraj

6. Salman Al-Faraj (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 43.66, Salman Al-Faraj is the 6th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 39 different languages.

Salman Mohammed Mohammed Al-Faraj (Arabic: سلمان محمد محمد الفرج; born 1 August 1989) is a Saudi Arabian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Saudi First Division League club Neom and captains the Saudi Arabia national team.

Photo of Yasser Al-Qahtani

7. Yasser Al-Qahtani (b. 1982)

With an HPI of 43.32, Yasser Al-Qahtani is the 7th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Yasser Saeed Al-Qahtani (Arabic: ياسر سعيد القحطاني; born 10 October 1982) is a Saudi Arabian former footballer who played as a forward for Al-Hilal FC in the Saudi Professional League. He was also captain of the Saudi Arabia national team.

Photo of Yousuf Al-Thunayan

8. Yousuf Al-Thunayan (b. 1963)

With an HPI of 42.67, Yousuf Al-Thunayan is the 8th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 20 different languages.

Yousuf Al-Thunayyan (Arabic: يوسف الثُنيان, born November 18, 1963) is a former association football winger and attacking midfielder from Saudi Arabia. He spent all 21 seasons of his senior career at Al-Hilal FC. A playmaker known for vision and technique, Al-Thunayyan was nicknamed "The Philosopher" for his dribbling, goal scoring, and playmaking skills. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest Saudi and Asian players of all time.

Photo of Ali Al-Bulaihi

9. Ali Al-Bulaihi (b. 1989)

With an HPI of 41.27, Ali Al-Bulaihi is the 9th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Ali Hadi Mohammed Al-Bulaihi (Arabic: علي هادي محمد البليهي; born 21 November 1989) is a Saudi who plays as a centre-back for Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal and the Saudi Arabia national team.

Photo of Omar Abdulrahman

10. Omar Abdulrahman (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 40.78, Omar Abdulrahman is the 10th most famous Saudi Arabian Soccer Player.  His biography has been translated into 27 different languages.

Omar Abdulrahman Ahmed Al Raaki Al Amoudi (Arabic: عمر عبد الرحمن أحمد الراقي العمودي; born 20 September 1991) is an Emirati professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or a winger for the United Arab Emirates national team. Coming through the youth system, Abdulrahman made his senior debut for Al Ain in the 2008–09 season. In his first season, he won the Etisalat Cup, President's Cup and Super Cup. Despite suffering a cruciate ligament injury in the following season which sidelined him for over six months, he became a first team regular and helped his club to avoid relegation in the 2010–11 season. He finished the season with 11 goals in 29 appearances, and was voted the most promising player of the year. In the 2011–12 season, Abdulrahman suffered the same injury again and was out for six months, he returned from the injury to see his club crowned champions of the league. After a two-week trial with Manchester City, he returned to Al Ain to become a key player in the 2012–13 season and was voted Emirati Player of the Year, as his side achieved the 2012 Super Cup and league title. ESPN FC ranked Abdulrahman first in the Top ten Asian players of 2012. In 2013, Abdulrahman was listed by FIFA in the most promising future stars in Asia. Abdulrahman was ranked thirty-nine on the Goal 50 list for the best 50 players of the 2012–13 season.

People

Pantheon has 108 people classified as Saudi Arabian soccer players born between 1959 and 2001. Of these 108, 106 (98.15%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Saudi Arabian soccer players include Majed Abdullah, Saeed Al-Owairan, and Sami Al-Jaber. The most famous deceased Saudi Arabian soccer players include Mohammed Al-Khilaiwi, and Khamis Al-Owairan. As of April 2024, 41 new Saudi Arabian soccer players have been added to Pantheon including Fahad Al-Bishi, Saleh Al-Shehri, and Mohamed Abd Al-Jawad.

Living Saudi Arabian Soccer Players

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Deceased Saudi Arabian Soccer Players

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Newly Added Saudi Arabian Soccer Players (2024)

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