Gianni Infantino talked about Saudi Arabia’s importance in the football world when he met the country’s Minister of Sport, HRH Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al Faisal, and the Saudi Arabian Football Association (SAFF) President Yasser Al Misehal in Paris. The FIFA President praised the Kingdom’s staging of the FIFA Club World Cup 2023™, the hosting two groups of the FIFA Series 2024™ and the progress made by women’s football.

“Saudi Arabia is a very important partner for FIFA and is playing an important role in football development,” Mr Infantino said. “They staged an outstanding and successful FIFA Club World Cup 2023 and have taken great steps to grow women's football, which I saw first-hand while attending a Saudi Women’s Premier League game between Al Ahli and Al Ittihad last December.” Women's football has also taken a huge leap forward in Saudi Arabia in the last three years. The women's national team, the Green Falcons, played their first fixtures in early 2022 and more recently Saudi Arabia entered the FIFA/Coca-Cola Women’s World Ranking for the first time in March 2023.