PIF Becomes Full Owner of Four Top Saudi Clubs

Saudi Arabia has announced the transfer of the remaining ownership stakes in four of the country's largest football clubs to the Public Investment Fund (PIF), completing a major restructuring of the sports sector. The Ministry of Sport confirmed in August 2026 that the 25% stakes in Al-Hilal, Al-Nassr, Al-Ittihad, and Al-Ahli would move from their nonprofit entities to PIF, making the fund the sole 100% owner of each club.

The 25% being transferred was previously held by nonprofit foundations linked to each club. As part of the move, these nonprofit boards are being dissolved. The step represents the second phase of the Sports Clubs Investment and Privatization Project, and it completes a process that began in June 2023, when 75% of each club was converted into a company owned by PIF while 25% remained with a nonprofit organization.

By removing the nonprofit ownership layer, the four clubs now sit fully under PIF, a change intended to simplify governance and open the door to future commercial restructuring or potential sales. As of August 2026, no published Saudi Riyal transaction price or fee has been specified for the transferred stakes; officials describe the move as a regulatory and ownership restructuring rather than a public cash transaction.

The wider privatization framework is overseen at the national level by the Supervisory Committee for Privatization in the Sports Sector, alongside relevant Council of Ministers decisions. There is no requirement for individuals or the general public to complete any online service steps, as the process is handled entirely at the government and institutional level.

Why it matters

The change signals a clear direction toward professional, investor-ready club structures. Separately, PIF has entered a binding agreement to sell 70% of Al-Hilal Club Company to a private investor at an enterprise value of SAR 1.4 billion, subject to approvals and closing conditions — an early example of the kind of investment the new ownership model is designed to enable.

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