Launched in 2019 as part of Saudi Arabia’s strategic vision to diversify the country’s economy away from its reliance on non-renewables, Riyadh Season now stands as one of the world’s biggest entertainment and cultural festivals. One of the most important aspects of the season is the focus on sports – the Saudi capital has quickly positioned itself as one of the world’s foremost destinations for top-class sporting events – with world-class boxing, international tennis tournaments and even eSports contributing to the proceedings. This year’s iteration is set to be bigger and better than ever, with a whole host of new sports and familiar names added to the roster. Read on to learn all about Riyadh Season 2025 and what to expect as the world’s best descend on Saudi Arabia once again.
How Riyadh Became a Global Sports Hub
The concept of Riyadh Season was first introduced in the mid-2010s as part of Saudi Arabia’s strategic vision to diversify the economy by boosting tourism through culture, entertainment and sports. As a forward-thinking nation, the government were interested in creating a seasonal festival – during Riyadh’s cooler winter months – that could essentially compete with other more established tourism destinations to attract international visitors.
The first iteration took place in 2019 as part of the Saudi Seasons initiative, and the enterprise has grown year on year, now representing one of the key pillars of Saudi Arabia’s economic strategy going forward. Riyadh now plays a major role in hosting international tournaments and events that had previously been seen as difficult to make due to a range of contributing factors. One of the key factors has been the Saudis’ willingness to invest heavily in international sport, a strategy championed by Turki Al-Sheikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and adviser to the Royal Court, who has described Riyadh Season as an event that “belongs to everyone.”
Al-Sheikh has confirmed that this year’s event will open with a grand parade at Boulevard Riyadh City, which will encompass 25 giant balloons, 25 floats, 3,000 performers, and more than 300 handlers, organised in collaboration with the U.S. company Macy’s. He also highlighted how this year’s event will focus on three key aspects: Expanding opportunities for youth and women, fostering Saudi creativity, and elevating local content to compete with global standards.
Al-Sheikh will undoubtedly be hoping to improve upon last year’s highly impressive numbers. Riyadh Season 2024 saw 110 billion media impressions, 3,300 media visits to the Kingdom from more than half of the world’s countries, and 20 million in-person visits from 135 nations. These outstanding figures have combined to place the market value of the Riyadh Season brand at a staggering $3.2 billion – not bad for an endeavour yet to reach its tenth birthday.
Riyadh Season 2025 Sports Lineup: What to Expect
Expanding on previous iterations, Riyadh Season 2025 is bursting at the seams with world-class talent across a plethora of the globe’s most popular sports. From October to March, the festival will see some of the planet’s most iconic athletes grace the Kingdom, starting in earnest from October 15.
The 2025 6 Kings Slam event, held at the ANB Arena from October 15 to 18, will see six of the world’s best male tennis players – including Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic – engage in a straight knockout competition for an eye-watering $4.5 million for the winner.
World-class boxing is also on offer, with contemporary icons like David Benavidez, Chris Eubank Jr., Devin Haney, Nouya Inoue and one of the game’s current pound-for-pound best in Artur Beterbiev all set to appear at this year’s event. Multiple world titles will be contested, promising high-stakes action and unforgettable bouts for fans and enthusiasts alike.
WWE Royal Rumble will take place at the end of January, before the Fantastic Flags Football Classic at the end of March; a three-team, round-robin flag football tournament featuring current and retired NFL stars and celebrities, organised by legendary NFL quarterback Tom Brady, among others. These are just a few of the top-class sporting events on offer at this year’s Riyadh Season.
What Does the Future Hold for Riyadh Season and Sport?
Where sport and Riyadh season are concerned, it’s safe to say that the Saudi authorities are not resting on their laurels. Strategic expansion is planned beyond 2025, with a range of global partnerships and more variety in sports events in the pipeline. This will hopefully expand on the already-lucrative arrangements in place with various stakeholders throughout the nation and beyond. One of those stakeholders is global sports entertainment platform DAZN, which is known for its wide-ranging coverage of boxing – a key component of Riyadh Season. Their partnership agreement with the Saudi organisers guarantees exclusive coverage of Riyadh Season events, and considering the success of the festival in its short lifespan so far, it is thought the DAZN hierarchy will want to keep the good times rolling.
In early 2025, the company sold a minority stake to Surj Sports, the sports investment unit of Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund (PIF), which has been responsible for bringing global talent such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Sadio Mane and Karim Benzema to the Arabian Peninsula to play in the Saudi Pro League. While not directly involved in Riyadh Season, football and the PIF play a crucial role in the country's strategic vision, sharing a similar mission and investment strategy under Vision 2030. This includes expanding tourism, promoting international events, showcasing the country to the world, and increasing domestic spending on entertainment.
Riyadh Season, PIF, and Saudi Arabia’s Expanding Sports Empire
Some recent reports, although denied by the club, have suggested that the PIF could be interested in buying out the Glazer Family to take full control of England’s Manchester United. As one of English football’s most successful clubs, an acquisition of such scale would be huge for everyone involved; the PIF, the government and especially Turki Al-Sheikh, who himself took to social media recently to comment on the state of the club, saying: “The best news I heard today is that Manchester United is now in an advanced stage of completing a deal to sell to a new investor. I hope he's better than the previous owners.”
Whether this would even be possible from a logistical point of view is another potential stumbling block. The PIF acquired Newcastle United in 2021 with a majority 80% stake in the club, prompting widespread concern throughout English football as the league’s members feared a repeat of Abu Dhabi’s purchase of Manchester City in 2008, which prompted a spending spree – and subsequent period of dominance – which the other teams have only recently caught up with.
This prompted a whole host of rule changes, including multiple ownership regulations and the implementation of Profit and Sustainability rules to ensure clubs were only spending what they were making.
While it is doubtful that an acquisition of Manchester United would be allowed to go ahead while the PIF was still involved with Newcastle, it is undeniable that the PIF’s access to funding and long-term investment strategy means that Riyadh Season can continue on its current trajectory of attempting to attract the world’s best sporting talent. With the PIF’s backing, Riyadh Season can continue to help Saudi Arabia grow on a global scale, positioning itself as a world-class destination for sports and entertainment. Whether that will involve a sporting giant such as Manchester United remains to be seen.
Saudi Arabia is undergoing a profound transformation. Sporting and entertainment events such as Riyadh Season are at the forefront of this change, helping to elevate the nation’s global profile, attract tourism, and position it as a leading cultural destination – while advancing the broader vision of diversifying the economy and reducing long-standing reliance on oil wealth.
