The Saudi League advanced to 13th place in the world, with a market value estimated at one billion euros, according to data from the international website «Transfer Market».Saudi clubs concluded sensational deals this summer, the latest of which was Al-Nassr's announcement of signing Spanish defender Martinez, a deal that broke the one billion euro barrier, bringing the league's market value to 1.03 billion euros.The number of players in the Saudi League so far is 505, with an average market value per player estimated at 2.03 million euros, and the average age of the players is 26.5 years.The number of non-Saudi players in the league is 145, representing 28.7 percent of the total players in the league. Al-Hilal's new striker Darwin Nunez and Al-Qadisiyah's new striker Matteo Retegui are equal as the players with the highest market value at 45 million euros.
This summer, the Saudi League has the opportunity to become one of the top ten leagues in the world in terms of market value, with 31 days remaining until the end of the transfer market in the Saudi League.This year's summer transfer market witnessed a remarkable shift in terms of contracts between Saudi clubs, after targeting a large segment of rising international stars, which led to a significant decline in the average age of contracts, and the presence of players under the age of 25 became a recurring phenomenon and not an exception.After Saudi clubs were a destination for veteran players and prominent names, they began to compete with their European counterparts for the most prominent emerging talents, for several strategic goals such as investing in them in the future or benefiting from them in local and international tournaments, and giving them the opportunity to integrate early with the group and under the eyes of the technical and administrative staff, which gives the clubs the opportunity to obtain the best version of the rising star, and make him a fundamental pillar in the future.
Over the past years, this trend has begun to take place significantly since Gabri Vega moved, in the summer of 2023, to Al-Ahly Saudi Arabia with a contract amounting to 12 million euros annually, preferring the Saudi offer to Napoli's interest. At that time, Ruben Neves' move to Al Hilal, coming from Wolverhampton, for 55 million euros, constituted a major turning point. Moussa Diaby also moved from Aston Villa to Al-Ittihad for 60 million euros, while Al-Nasr signed Angelo Gabriel (19 years old) from Chelsea.This phenomenon expanded with the transfer of Unai Hernandez (20 years old) to Al-Ittihad, after he was one of the brightest stars of «La Masia», followed by Matteo Retighi, the top scorer in the Italian League last season, who moved to Al-Qadisiyah for 68.5 million euros, with an annual salary of 20 million, which is equivalent to eight times what he was receiving in Italy.
In a similar move, Al-Qadisiyah also included Alejandro Vargas (18 years old) and Iker Almina (18 years old) last summer, before including Miguel Carvalho from Espanyol this year.In turn, Joao Felix joined Al-Nasr, after he was close to returning to Benfica, but the intervention of Cristiano Ronaldo and coach Jesus settled the situation, in exchange for a deal amounting to 50 million euros.Reports indicate that other players are on their way to Saudi stadiums.The Saudi League officials believe that betting on young players is not a coincidence, but rather part of a long-term strategy, according to what the league's executive director announced in previous statements to «AS», as the Public Investment Fund clubs (Al-Hilal, Al-Nasr, Al-Ittihad, Al-Ahly) adopt a policy of «8+2»; that is, eight foreign players without specifying an age, and two under 21 years old.
This approach is not limited to raising the level of competition, but also aims to establish a strong youth base that ensures continued football development in the Kingdom. Attracting players at an early age also provides the opportunity to later remarket them to Europe with high financial returns, similar to the Gabri Vega deal. As this transformation accelerates, a fundamental question arises: where can Saudi expansion towards reach global talent .
