Arya News - League delays matches after revised Asian Cup dates create ‘additional flexibility in the domestic football calendar’.
Matches in Saudi Arabia’s premier football league scheduled for the coming week have been postponed after the rescheduling of the AFC Asian Cup 2027, the Saudi Pro League (SPL) says.
“The decision comes as part of a wider review of the 2026-27 league fixture schedule, with the revised Asian Cup dates creating additional flexibility in the domestic football calendar,” the SPL said in a statement on Tuesday, two days before the start of the match week.
The postponement of the Asian Cup until December next year was announced earlier in the day after recent attacks on the kingdom. The 24-team continental tournament had been due to take place from January 7 to February 5.
Asian football’s governing body announced the decision after “extensive discussions and close consultation with the Local Organising Committee (LOC) of the AFC Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2027 and the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF)”.
The tournament will now run from December 23, 2027, to January 21, 2028.
An attack on Riyadh’s international airport last month killed at least 13 people and wounded more than 300. Yemen’s Houthis claimed responsibility for the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade. Further attacks on the airport in the span of a week killed at least five more people.
“New dates for matchweek 13 will be announced once the review is complete.”
The SPL has rescheduled several domestic league games this season for logistical reasons, and last month’s AFC Champions League Elite clash in Riyadh between hosts Al-Nassr and Emirati side Al Wasl was postponed due to a threat of missile attacks.
Kickoff was delayed after Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defence issued a safety warning 15 minutes before the scheduled start time.