in
Kirchberg am Wagram, Austria (2024)
Background Due to the influence of religious leaders in Saudi Arabia, active opposition of political leaders and sport administrators, and systematic discrimination against
women's sport, a women's national team could not exist for a long time. The creation of a FIFA-recognised women's national team was banned by law in 2008. Systemic discrimination remained intact despite limited reforms, until the death of King
Abdullah in 2015. With King
Salman's ascension to the throne in 2015, talks about football reforms escalated. However, his son
Mohammed bin Salman was the first to spearhead the reforms, including to
women's football. Saudi Arabia allowed women to attend football games since 2017, the first step for a future creation of a women's football team. In December 2019, the
Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) organised the first unofficial women's competition in the
Jeddah area. An official nationwide tournament, the amateur
Saudi Women's Football League, was launched in February 2020, concentrated in three big cities:
Riyadh, Jeddah, and
Dammam. Following the creation of the league, calls for a creation of a women's national team increased.
Inception On 11 August 2021, the SAFF appointed
Monika Staab as head coach and
Sandra Kälin as co-coach of the newly established women's national team. Saudi Arabia played their first games in February 2022, taking part in a friendly tournament in
Malé, Maldives. They debuted on 20 February, beating
Seychelles in a 2–0 win. Following the successful debut, Lamia Bin Bahian, a board member of the SAFF, revealed a long-term plan to allow the team to participate in the first
FIFA Women's World Cup in the next ten years, with the aim to become a dominant force in the Gulf, West Asia, and Asian level. ==Results and fixtures==