July 30 – The Saudi Pro League (SPL) will resume with the first of the final eight rounds of fixtures kicking off next Wednesday with the Riyadh derby between Al Hilal and Al Nassr.
The 16-team SPL was halted in March. It will resume behind closed doors.
With fans prevented from attending the SPL has launched its #OurLeagueIsBack campaign which allows fans to share their support online, with videos and messages then being shown across stadiums on matchdays.
Al Hilal and Al Nassr are battling it out at the top of the table, with Al Hilal currently six points ahead of last year’s league winners. Below them the fight for survival sees a margin of just ten points between the bottom six clubs. Just four points separate Jeddah giants Al Ittihad from the drop zone.
The race for next season’s AFC Champions League spots is tight. There are four qualification places to play for. Current third place Al-Wehda have just eight points separating them from eighth placed Al Shabab (who parted company with manager Luis Garcia during lockdown). While Al Hilal and Al Nassr looked nailed on to qualify, the remaining two spots will be hard fought for with Al-Ahli, Al Faisaly, Al-Taawoun and Al-Raed all in the hunt.
This current season’s AFC Champions League will complete with centralised group and knock-out matches in Qatar in November. Al Hilal, Al Ahli, Al Taawoun and Al Nassr are all in contention to qualify for the last eight knock-out places.
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