PIF to Own Full Stakes in Four Top Saudi Clubs

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Sport announced on 19 August 2026 that it has begun transferring the remaining 25% stakes in four of the country's biggest football clubs — Al Ittihad, Al Ahli, Al Hilal and Al Nassr — from their nonprofit foundations to the Public Investment Fund (PIF), after completing the required statutory and regulatory procedures.

The move is part of the Sports Clubs Investment and Privatization Project, launched in 2023, under which each of the four clubs was converted into a club company with an initial ownership split of 75% PIF and 25% for a nonprofit foundation representing club members.

Under the 2026 decision, the boards of directors of the four clubs' nonprofit foundations — which held the 25% stakes — are dissolved. However, the boards of the club companies and their executive management teams remain in place; only the nonprofit boards are affected.

Once completed, all shares in the club companies of Al Ittihad, Al Ahli and Al Nassr are consolidated under PIF, ending the earlier dual ownership structure, unless later sale transactions change ownership. For Al Hilal, PIF remains the major shareholder following a separate 2026 agreement to sell a significant stake to a domestic investment company, pending regulatory approvals; that sale is distinct from the 25% transfer.

The Ministry describes the step as a way to simplify ownership and ease a new investment phase, positioning PIF as the direct owner of the full equity before any future privatization deals or partner entries. The transaction is an internal restructuring within state-related entities, with no disclosed fee schedule in Saudi riyals, and no role for public e-services or member-paid charges for ordinary citizens or club fans.

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