JEDDAH: Saudi football clubs are appealing directly to female fans for support through ad campaigns and social media as women are allowed into stadiums for the first time on Friday.
The official Twitter account for Al-Ittihad directed a tweet toward the club’s female fans on Tuesday. It said that women were powerful agents in the success of the team, just like their male counterparts.
Two weeks ago, a campaign was launched for fans to show their support for their favorite teams through SMS texts. Al-Ittihad’s tweet is riding on the hype surrounding women attending the club’s match.
Al-Ittihad’s offical tweet generated a massive response from the team’s lovers and haters alike. Elaaf tweeted: “We’re finally being addressed as a part of Ittihad’s fanclub.”
Many couldn’t believe they were finally being noticed. One Twitter user said: “I never thought I’d live to see such a tweet, we’re all here for you.”
Others such as Twitter user Shikha provided proof of their contribution by posting photos of the sent text, while many women declared they were now switching support to Al-Ittihad for being the first to address them as an audience.
One die-hard fan tweeted: “I will attend the classico match and I’ll even pay for tickets for other girls attending.”
Dedicated Al-Ittihad female fans are preparing to attend the club’s first match of the year against Al-Hilal on Jan. 13, in Riyadh’s King Fahd International Stadium. Al-Ahli fans will be called on to show up for a Jeddah match against the visiting Al-Batin team on Friday in the King Abdullah Sports City stadium.
The General Sports Authority (GSA) revealed the seating plan for the Riyadh match. Inside the stadium, women will occupy the northern area through gates two, three and four, and the southern area through gates 40, 41 and 42. They are are expected to fill 7,500 seats.
Head of the Saudi Federation for Sports Media, Raja Al-Sulami, told Arab News that they have made the stadium ready to receive women. He added: “In cooperation with the Saudi Federation for Community Sports, we have made all necessary arrangements to receive them in an atmosphere that respects their privacy.” He added that there are 14,000 seats at the Jeddah’s “Shining Jewel” stadium ready for the occasion.
A tweet from the official account of Al-Ahli football club
The GSA also announced a new category for VVIPs with a single ticket costing SR10,000 ($2,666) in all Saudi professional league matches, beginning with Friday’s round 17 match between Al-Ahli and Al-Batin. The tweet was met with disbelief from both Al-Ittihad and Al-Hilal fans, who called the price “outrageous.”
Fahad Al-Zahrani, an Al-Ahli club board member and director of the club’s media center, told Arab News that the attendance of the president of the Saudi Federation for Community Sports, Princess Reema bint Bandar bin Sultan, emphasized the importance of the event.
“Through our Twitter page, we have also posted some instructions for entering the stadium. We also gave women that are going to attend the match some information about the stadium facilities, such as bathrooms, praying zones and even medical clinics that they can visit in cases they need to,” Al-Zahrani said.
Many Saudi women celebrities reacted to the news of the weekend matches positively.
Shoura Council member and founder of the Jeddah United basketball team Lina Almaeena told Arab News: “I’m ecstatic! It’s a historical moment in Saudi for women. It’s a huge alternative for them to go to the stadium together and enjoy their time, other than going to malls or dining out. It’ll have an impact on many levels, socially, economically and on a family level.”
Almaeena is thrilled and will attend the other football match that will be held on Friday between Al-Ahli and Al-Batin in Jeddah.
Hadeel Al-Shumrani, the first Saudi Zumba trainer and also an actress, is a big football fan. “For me Al-Ittihad is not just a club it is more than that, as you can see in most of the matches how the spirit of the fans and how they encourage their team,” she told Arab News.
“I would absolutely attend the game with my friends,” she added. “I believe such activities are very useful for women to enrich our sports knowledge and it also grows positive competition spirit, hopefully we will be able to participate in games in the coming years.”
Diehard female national football fans are also looking forward to the big day.
“I never thought I’d ever be able to attend a football match in Saudi! I will be at the soccer match to support my team! Hilal all the way!” 19-year-old Sara Abdul-Aziz said.
The excitement and enthusiasm is contagious. For decades, female fans would have to watch games on TV screens; now they have a chance to see the action live.
Rania bin Yassin, a mother of four, told Arab News: “I’d love to attend with my brothers. They always go the matches together, but this time, I will attend with them! It’s definitely a new experience that I’m looking forward to!”
Women are gearing up with face paint and team shirts to show their support and enthusiasm. Dedicated female soccer fans have previously traveled abroad to watch the matches and cheer their teams on.
Muna AbuSulayman, a Saudi presenter and the first Saudi broadcaster to appear on Arab satellite channels, and co-host of one of MBC’s most popular social programs, Kalam Nawaem, told Arab News: “I actually don’t care about football at all. However, I think it is an overdue decision that will help girls to participate in the ecosystem of sports.”
She added, “I love reading about how the stadiums are working hard to accommodate women from bathrooms to eating areas.”
Lama Al-Sulaiman, who was elected deputy chairwoman of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry in December 2009, becoming the first female to hold such a post in Saudi history, told Arab News: “I am not one of the football fans, but I am happy with this event and this good initiative. I also think that the most important thing that will result from the attendance of matches is bonding between family members, providing a modern environment in which the inhabitants of the city meet.”
She added, “The sense of enthusiasm and participation of sports and leisure will reflect on respecting the systems of events and dealing with people, will also increase confidence and good faith in the behavior of our youth.”
Yomn Luqman, a sports journalist who declined to mention which club is her favorite, told Arab News: “As this game will be the first match with women attendees after the historical decision of the sports authority, I believe it will have a huge number of attendees and I received many calls from football fans asking about what to wear and how to enter the stadium.”
She added: “These days the weather is very beautiful in the Kingdom, which will help people to enjoy it more. It is worth mentioning that women now really care to attend the match more than they care for which club they want to win.”
The first opportunity for Saudi female football fans to attend a football match was in 2015 in London during the Saudi Super Cup final. That was the first appearance of Saudi women in a football stadium attending a match between two Saudi clubs.
Nahed Fahad, who attended the match, said: “It was fantastic and exciting. The guys were well behaved and there were no crazy antics, like many portray. I went with my daughter and we had a good time in London, and I look forward to going with her again in Riyadh.”
International matches that feature the Saudi national squad have always had female fans. However, sports, and especially football, have been viewed as a masculine activity.
Playing any kind of sport used to be difficult for women in Saudi Arabia, since public female practice of physical sports was a socially controversial issue. Before the Ministry of Education announced in July 2017 that girls in public schools would receive physical education by the start of the 2017-2018 academic year, girls did not have access to physical education, except in some private schools.
In 2016, the Saudi Cabinet appointed Princess Reema as undersecretary for the women’s section of the General Authority for Sports, becoming the first woman to hold a government sports position in the Kingdom.
— With input from Noor Nugali, Aseel Bashraheel & Ruba Obaid.
Saudi football clubs call on women fans to kick off historic weekend matches
Saudi football clubs call on women fans to kick off historic weekend matches
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Visionary eight-year-old Saudi wins global competition with glasses for blind
- Vision Friend uses cameras, sensors, and alarms
- Design beat nearly 1,000 entries from 19 countries
JEDDAH: An eight-year-old inventor from Saudi Arabia won an international competition for designing a pair of glasses that aim to help blind people navigate the world safely.
Lama Al-Badin, from Dammam, won an $800 cash prize for her Vision Friend design after beating nearly 1,000 entries from 19 countries in the “Glasses of the Future” competition.
Organized by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, the competition challenged children worldwide to reimagine eyewear to support eye health and accessibility.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Organized by the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness, the competition challenged children worldwide to reimagine eyewear to support eye health and accessibility.
• Despite her young age, Lama Al-Badin demonstrated resourcefulness throughout the competition. She acknowledged the challenges she faced during the design phase.
Al-Badin’a design impressed the jury with its cameras and sensors that would detect obstacles and alert blind and visually-impaired users of dangers through various alarm sounds and vibrations.
“I always have scientific discussions with my family at home, which often spark various ideas that serve life in meaningful ways,” Al-Badin told Arab News.
“When I learned about the competition through a school announcement, the idea for the glasses emerged. I envisioned them as a companion to help people face road dangers through sensor systems. I wanted to add warning tones to enhance their auditory sensitivity and active awareness.”
Her design incorporates eco-friendly materials such as bamboo and recycled plastic, and includes cutting-edge features like sensors, an alarm system, and a multi-functional charging case.
Despite her young age, Al-Badin demonstrated resourcefulness throughout the competition. She acknowledged the challenges she faced during the design phase and said, “embarking on a new experience was an exciting challenge for me.
“During the design phase, the main challenge was translating my idea and vision from paper into a digital design. At that point, I sought help from my older sister because I hadn’t yet learned this type of drawing.”
Winning the competition has brought immense pride to her family and the country. She said: “I feel happy and proud. Winning is a motivation for me to develop further and achieve more accomplishments.
“I feel proud and hope to be an active member in the development and building of my beloved country.”
Her family, too, played a pivotal role in her journey. “They were very happy with this wonderful achievement. My family is my primary supporter, and I thank them.
“They have been my source of inspiration and encouragement. Praise be to God, I live in an aware family. At home, we love exchanging information and brainstorming solutions to all kinds of problems.”
Al-Badin’s design resonated with Caroline Casey, president of the IAPB and a member of the competition jury.
“The thing that stood out the most was how conscious and aware Lama was about her role in protecting the planet that she lives on and her ability to see how technology can be an enabler,” she told Arab News.
“In her mind, there were no barriers in the way of creating a product that was friendly to the planet and friendly to humans. When you consider her glasses, you’d think, ‘Yeah, why aren’t I doing it?’”
She continued: “A young person’s imagination doesn’t seem to focus on what we can’t achieve but on what is possible. I just love her approach and can’t wait to wear a pair.”
Casey also underscored the broader impact of initiatives like the “Glasses of the Future” competition. She said: “I want every child to be able to ‘see their future,’ both literally and metaphorically. Ensuring that every single child on this planet has access to affordable, accessible eyecare and health determines the future potential of our global citizenship and planet.”
Alongside Al-Badin, five-year-old Grace Rita from Kenya won the Younger Kids category for her vibrant and imaginative glasses, A Friend for My Eyes.
Rita’s design focuses on making eyewear fun and approachable for children with features like glow-in-the-dark frames and customizable lenses.
Besides Casey, the competition’s judging panel was composed of a global jury of experts, including Jo Frost, parenting expert and TV personality, and Dr. Prabha Choksi, ophthalmologist and founder of the Dr. Choksi Vitiligo Foundation.
Frost told Arab News: “I was truly impressed by the creativity and innovation of these little geniuses, each design brought a big smile of joy. We can all agree that eye health is often overlooked in our busy day-to-day lives of raising children, despite its importance to a child’s development and future.
“However, with Lama’s design’s inclusiveness, scientific aspects, and Grace’s bright and inspiring colors, these designs not only demonstrate the need to engage children in the global conversation about eye health but also empower eyewear wearers around the world.”
The competition also comes on the heels of critical research by the IAPB, which revealed that children with low vision learn only half as much as their peers with good or corrected vision in school.
This study, released in collaboration with the Seva Foundation on World Sight Day, underscores the profound impact of early interventions like eye exams and prescription glasses.
Japanese orchestra meets video gaming in Riyadh
- World-renowned Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra performed two nights of concerts at Princess Nourah University’s Red Hall
RIYADH: What does video gaming and the orchestra have in common? Collaboration, immersive experiences, and the art of storytelling at its finest.
The world-renowned Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra spoiled guests with two nights of concerts powered by Qiddiya Gaming at Princess Nourah University’s Red Hall on Thursday and Friday.
Producer and director of Final Fantasy XIV Naoki Yoshida and renowned sound editor and composer Masayoshi Soken took the opportunity to introduce themselves to a full house of fans, wearing traditional Saudi thobes.
Arab News had the opportunity to interview Yoshida, Soken, senior story designer Natsuko Ishikawa, and localization supervisor Michael-Christopher Koji Fox.
Yoshida expressed his gratitude toward the game’s loyal fans in the Middle East, saying: “I’m really appreciative of the fans in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia that have loved the Final Fantasy franchise.
“We are finally here to give back to the community that’s loved us and supported us for so long. To be able to bring them the excitement, we are bringing them sound and music.
“We don’t envision this as the end; we envision this as something that’s going to connect us into the future.”
In the first part of the concert, the orchestra performed works like “Victory Fanfare” and “Moebius.”
In order to give gamers a true gaming experience, Soken had the idea of creating the same in-game pause during the orchestra’s performance to reflect the battle in the game.
Soken said: “During that battle, there’s an in-game mechanic where time stops and the player stops, so when playing that song in concert we want the players to feel like that in music; the game experience and their memories of the game are connected in that way.
“We wanted to figure out a way to recreate that time stop while being played in the concert by an orchestra. So the idea we came up with is if time stops in the game, how about making the concert stop?”
Soken’s idea was turned into reality and the crowd was in awe as the orchestra paused for a few seconds.
In charge of creating graphics and videos, Ishikawa said her job was about picking scenes that resonated with the players.
She said: “What we created here feels like it was created by the Final Fantasy development team, even though it’s a concert.”
Unlike a typical concert, in which each song evokes different emotions to each individual, Soken said gaming concerts created a joint emotional experience.
Soken said: “With a game concert, everyone is experiencing the same thing because they experienced the same game, so everyone shares that excitement.”
More than 100 musicians traveled from Japan, accompanied by vocalists, to bring the soundtrack from Final Fantasy XIV to life.
Soken said: “We know that Saudi Arabia and Japan have a long history of friendly collaboration but there has not been a lot with music, and there’s probably been nothing with gaming music.
“The people that experience (the concert) will be able to go home and tell their friends how exciting an experience it was and how these people from Japan brought this great thing that we have never seen before.”
The event also offered fans a dedicated merchandise area featuring exclusive items and other products shipped directly from Tokyo.
Diamond ticket holders also had the opportunity to meet Yoshida, Soken, Ishikawa, and Fox, receiving a signed poster and photo.
With over 30 million total registered players, Final Fantasy XIV is one of the most popular MMORPG games today, while Qiddiya, which was launched in 2018 under the leadership of King Salman, is an emerging capital for entertainment, sports and culture that aims to enhance the quality of life of visitors and residents.
King Salman Center for Disability Research signs agreements
- Prof. Imed Gallouzi, chairman of the Center of Excellence for Smart Health at KAUST, emphasized the significance of the new partnership with the King Salman Center for Disability Research
RIYADH: King Abdullah University of Science and Technology signed an agreement on Thursday with the King Salman Center for Disability Research aimed at enhancing collaboration between the two parties in diagnosing, managing, and treating disabilities.
The agreement was signed in King Abdullah Economic City by Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, special advisor to King Salman and chairman of the board of trustees of the King Salman Center for Disability Research, and KAUST president Prof. Edward Byrne.
Prof. Imed Gallouzi, chairman of the Center of Excellence for Smart Health at KAUST, emphasized the significance of the new partnership with the King Salman Center for Disability Research.
Saudi Heart Association teams up with Bayer to enhance cardiac care
- Partnership aims to educate Saudi healthcare professionals on cardiovascular disease
- Atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide and in Saudi Arabia
RIYADH: The Saudi Heart Association has entered a partnership with healthcare leader Bayer to enhance cardiac care and educate Saudi healthcare professionals on cardiovascular disease to reduce mortality and improve heart health.
“We are proud to announce a new partnership between Bayer and the SHA aimed at advancing cardiovascular care in Saudi Arabia, focusing on improving early detection and prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease,” Bayer, a global leader in life sciences with a strong emphasis on healthcare and nutrition, posted on X.
“The goal of the partnership is to strengthen bilateral cooperation to improve cardiac care in Saudi Arabia in alignment with Vision 2030. The agreement will prioritize early detection of at-risk patients of cardiovascular diseases who exhibit a combination of modifiable risk factors (such as hypertension, smoking, poor diet, physical inactivity, high cholesterol) and non-modifiable risk factors (such as age, family history, gender, and genetic predisposition),” a statement from Bayer said.
CVDs are a major health concern globally. In 2016, more than 200,000 Saudi citizens were living with CVD and the current prevalence of CVD in Saudi Arabia is expected to be significantly higher, given the rise of CVD risk factors in the country (obesity, diabetes mellitus, dyslipidemia, hypertension and others).
Saudi Vision 2030 aims to reduce the clinical and economic burden of CVD and scale up vitality and longevity in a new era of comprehensive healthcare.
From a health economics standpoint, CVDs are a burden on healthcare systems directly through expenditure and indirectly through years living with the disease, low productivity, premature morbidity and mortality.
Under the terms of the partnership, Bayer and the SHA will seek to advance educational initiatives for healthcare professionals in Saudi Arabia, with a focus on the primary prevention of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Throughout the partnership, emphasis will be on delivering educational lectures and hands-on workshops for healthcare professionals, introducing them to the latest diagnostic tools that streamline early CVD detection in a cost-effective manner.
Additionally, the partnership will promote evidence-based early risk management local guidelines and strategies in clinical practice, aligning resources to achieve superior patient outcomes.
Elaborating on the partnership, Maged ElShazly, managing director, Bayer Saudi Arabia, and country commercial lead for Bayer Consumer Health, said: “This partnership marks a significant step forward in advancing cardiovascular health in the Kingdom. Aligned with Saudi Vision 2030, our goal is to collaborate closely with the SHA to support the government’s efforts in reducing CVD mortality and morbidity, improving heart health, and enhancing the quality of life for individuals at high risk.
“Additionally, this collaboration with SHA will further propel our efforts to develop and implement local guidelines for effective CVD management, ensuring long-term impact and sustainability in healthcare practices across the Kingdom,” ElShazly said.
Bayer will support SHA with two main initiatives — a key opinion leaders’ engagement campaign to promote early CVD risk management among healthcare professionals and a media campaign to raise public awareness about CVD risk factors, early detection, and prevention strategies.
KSrelief’s Masam Project clears 840 mines
- The Masam team successfully cleared four unexploded ordnances in Zinjibar
- The team successfully removed 14 unexploded ordnances from Al-Waht district
ADEN: The Masam Project, an initiative launched by the Saudi aid agency KSrelief, successfully dismantled 840 mines across various regions of Yemen during the third week of November, including 29 anti-personnel mines, 129 anti-tank mines, and 682 unexploded ordnances.
The Masam team successfully cleared four unexploded ordnances in Zinjibar in the Abyan Governorate, and 162 in Aden Governorate. Two anti-tank mines in Al-Khawkhah and one unexploded ordnance in Hays, in Al-Hudaydah Governorate, were also removed. The team cleared one anti-personnel mine and one unexploded ordnance in the Qataba district of Al-Dhale Governorate.
The team successfully removed 14 unexploded ordnances from Al-Waht district and 22 from Al-Madaribah in Lahj Governorate, while in Marib Governorate four unexploded ordnances were cleared in the Al-Wadi district, along with 12 anti-personnel mines and 120 anti-tank mines in the Marib district.
