What is Riyadh Season? The sports festival in Saudi Arabia

Currently, some of the world's most important sporting events have been held in Saudi Arabia, thanks to Riyadh Season, an entertainment and sports festival whose goal is to bring the best events to its territory, in addition to expanding the country's brand globally.

The Riyadh Season will feature Saúl “Canelo” Álvarez as its main event this Saturday, May 3rd. The Guadalajara-born boxer joins the list of world-class athletes who have performed in Saudi Arabia.

Riyadh Season was founded in 2019 with the aim of turning Saudi Arabia into the world's entertainment capital. It was driven by the country's General Entertainment Authority, seeking to place Saudi Arabia in the spotlight of Western audiences and improve its image through sports and training events worldwide.

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This event has become the main driver of tourism for Saudi Arabia, increasing the number of visitors by 130 percent from 2023 to 2024, attracting 16 million tourists last year. It also increased hotel occupancy in five-star hotels to 97 percent, according to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA).

Saudi Arabia has become home to multiple sporting events in its country, including soccer, motorsports, golf, boxing, mixed martial arts, tennis, and padel finals. It has also partnered with the UFC to bring its brand to Las Vegas and create the Riyadh Season UFC Night.

The Riyadh Season brand not only seeks to bring the best to its home country or create unprecedented events in other countries, such as UFC Night. They are also currently sponsors of La Liga in Spain, in addition to being the main sponsor of Roma in Italy, expanding their brand as a main sponsor in soccer.

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Among the notable sporting events held during the Riyadh season are the Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, which was launched in 2021, and the creation of the LIV Golf League (Super Golf League), which began in 2022. In addition to the "6 Kings Slam," a tennis competition that began in 2024 and features the six best tennis players in the world.

In the football world, events have included the PSG vs. Riyadh Season friendly match between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, the creation of the Riyadh Season Cup with the participation of Messi's Inter Miami, Cristiano Ronaldo's Al Nassr, and Neymar Jr.'s Al Hilal, in addition to the finals of the Spanish and Italian Super Cups.

In combat sports, there have been major fights such as Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou, Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou, as well as the "Day of Reckoning" event featuring Anthony Joshua vs. Otto Wallin, Deontay Wilder vs. Joseph Parker, and Dmitry Bivol vs. Lyndon Arthur, as well as mixed martial arts events such as PFL vs. Bellator.

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