Saudi Arabian league set to kick-off behind closed doors

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation announced that the Mohammed Bin Salman league competition will commence on 17 October while the first division competition is scheduled to get underway on 20 October.

The competition will kick off on Saturday 17 October with the game between Abha and Al-Shabab at 19:00 hours CEST at Prince Faisal Bin Fahd stadium. Al-Taawon will take on Al-Faisaly FC on the same day at 19:10 CEST while Al-Qadsiah is set to face Al Wehda at 20:00 CEST at King Abdulaziz Sports City.

Anticipated derbies

The third round of the league will witness the Jeddah derby when Al-Ittihad take on Al-Ahli on 31 October, while Al-Nassr will encounter their rival, Al-Shabab in the same round on 1 November.

The Riyadh derby between Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr will be held on Saturday 21 November at king Fahd international stadium, while Al-Ahly meets with Al-Shabab on the same day in Jeddah.

Relegated and promoted teams:

Three clubs were relegated last season - Al-Adalah FC, Al-Hazem, and Al-Fayha, whereas the professional Saudi-Arabian league welcomes the three newly-promoted teams; Al-Batin, Al Qadsiah, and Al-Ain.

The stands remain empty until further notice

The Saudi Arabian Federation hasn't mentioned any updates regarding the fans' return to stadiums, however, it appears that there won't be a return anytime soon especially amid reports confirming a potential second wave of Covid-19 infections.