The King Cup (sometimes spelled King's Cup) (Arabic: كأس الملك, romanized: kass al-malik),[1] officially known as The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup (Arabic: كأس خادم الحرمين الشريفين, romanized: kass khadim al-haramayn al-sharifayn), is the Saudi Arabian football knockout cup competition.
 | |
| Organising body | Saudi Arabia Football Federation (SAFF) |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1957 |
| Region | Saudi Arabia |
| Number of teams | 32 |
| Qualifier for | AFC Champions League Two |
| Domestic cup(s) | Saudi Super Cup |
| Current champions | Al-Hilal (11th title) |
| Most successful club(s) | Al-Ahli (13 titles) |
| Television broadcasters | Shahid SSC AlRiyadiyah |
 2024–25 King Cup | |
The King's Cup is the second oldest knockout competition in Saudi Arabian football.
History
editThe cup was created in 1957 and was played until 1990. It was re-launched again in 2007 as "King's Cup of Champions", and was played by only the top 6 finishers of the Saudi Pro League plus the Crown Prince Cup and Federation Cup winners. In 2014 it was renamed as "King's Cup", the competition returned to its roots by implementing the old format.[2]
Qualification and prize money
editThe cup winner will be guaranteed a place in the AFC Champions League Two.[3] If the cup winner finishes in the top 3 in the Saudi Pro League, which means they will go to the AFC Champions League Elite, the slot goes to the fourth placed team in the table
Prize money:[3]
- Final winners: 5,500,000 Saudi Riyals.
- Final runners-up: 4,000,000 Saudi Riyals.
Winners
editPerformance by club
editTrophies
edit| Club | Winners | Winning years |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Ahli | 13
|
1962, 1965, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 2011, 2012, 2016[5] |
| Al-Hilal | 11
|
1961, 1964, 1980, 1982, 1984, 1989, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2023, 2024 |
| Al-Ittihad | 9
|
1958, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1967, 1988, 2010, 2013, 2018 |
| Al-Nassr | 6
|
1974, 1976, 1981, 1986, 1987, 1990 |
| Al-Shabab | 3
|
2008, 2009, 2014 |
| Al-Wehda | 2
|
1957, 1966 |
| Al-Ettifaq | 2
|
1968, 1985 |
| Al-Taawoun | 1
|
2019 |
| Al-Faisaly | 1
|
2021 |
| Al-Fayha | 1
|
2022 |
| Total | 49
|
Finals
edit| Club | Finalists | Finals years |
|---|---|---|
| Al-Hilal | 20
|
1961, 1963, 1964, 1968, 1977, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1984, 1985, 1987, 1989, 2010, 2015, 2017, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 |
| Al-Ittihad | 18
|
1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1963, 1964, 1967, 1979, 1982, 1986, 1988, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2018, 2019 |
| Al-Ahli | 18
|
1962, 1965, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1983, 1984, 2011, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017 |
| Al-Nassr | 16
|
1967, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1976, 1981, 1986, 1987, 1989, 1990, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2020, 2024 |
| Al-Wehda | 8
|
1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1966, 1970, 2023 |
| Al-Ettifaq | 6
|
1965, 1966, 1968, 1983, 1985, 1988 |
| Al-Shabab | 6
|
1969, 1980, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014 |
| Al-Taawoun | 3
|
1990, 2019, 2021 |
| Al-Riyadh | 2
|
1962, 1978 |
| Al-Faisaly | 2
|
2018, 2021 |
| Al-Fayha | 1
|
2022 |
| Total | 100
|
All-time Top goalscorers
edit- As of 24 September 2024
| Player | Nationality | Club(s) | Goals | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Majed Abdullah | Al-Nassr | 39 | |
| 2 | Amin Dabou | Al-Ahli | 28 | |
| 3 | Abderrazak Hamdallah | Al-Nassr (17), Al-Ittihad (6), Al-Shabab (2) | 25 | |
| 4 | Nasser Al-Shamrani Ahmed Al-Sogaier |
Al-Hilal (4), Al-Shabab (16) Al-Ahli (20) |
20 | |
| 5 | Mukhtar Fallatah | Al-Ittihad (11), Al-Wehda (7) | 18 | |
| 6 | Léandre Tawamba | Al-Taawoun (12), Al-Tai (2) | 14 | |
| 7 | Hussam Abu Dawood Omar Al-Somah |
Al-Ahli (12), Al-Ahli (12) |
12 |
Hat-tricks
editReferences
edit- ^ "Official SAFF site in English". Archived from the original on 18 September 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
- ^ "بيان: موافقة على تغيير نظامي كأس الملك وولي العهد". TheSAFF.com.sa. 18 September 2013. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2015.
- ^ a b "لائحة المسابقات والبطولات بالإتحاد العربي السعودي لكرة القدم" [Regulations of Saudi Arabian Football Federation Competitions] (PDF) (in Arabic). Saudi Arabian Football Federation. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 August 2018. Retrieved 30 April 2016.
- ^ The King's Cup was not held in 1975 due to the national mourning following the passing of King Faisal.
- ^ @ALAHLI_FC (November 18, 2022). "سجل بطولات الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الاهلي" (Tweet) (in Arabic) – via Twitter.
- ^ a b "Saudi Arabia - List of Cup Winners". Archived from the original on 2022-08-03. Retrieved 2023-02-02.
- ^ a b "Saudi King Cup of Champions's history". Archived from the original on 2011-11-21. Retrieved 2019-10-13.