the 2023–24 SAFF Women's Cup was the inaugural season of the annual Saudi women's football cup competition. Sixteen teams participated in the competition, including all teams from the current year's Women's Premier League. The competition began on 23 November 2023 with a round of 16.[1][2]
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Saudi Arabia |
| Dates | 23 November 2023 – 28 March 2024 |
| Teams | 16 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Al-Ahli (1st title) |
| Runner-up | Al-Shabab |
| Third place | Al-Qadsiah |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Matches played | 16 |
| Goals scored | 108 (6.75 per match) |
| Top goal scorer(s) |  Ibtissam Jraïdi (AHL)(14 goals) |
| Best player |  Alice Kusi (AHL) |
| Best goalkeeper |  Lindsey Harris (QDS) |
Goals scored in penalty shoot-outs not included. | |
The final was won by Al-Ahli, who beat Al-Shabab 3–2 at Kingdom Arena.[3]
Participating teams
editThe tournament features the participation of the following 16 teams: all teams from the 2023–24 Premier League season, with the remaining 8 spots determined by the results of the previous year's Saudi Women's First Division League results.[4]
| Saudi Women's Premier League the 7 clubs of the 2022–23 season |
Saudi Women's First Division League the best 9 clubs of the 2022–23 season |
|---|---|
Knockout stage
editBracket
editThe tournament bracket is shown below, with bold denoting the winners of each match.
| Round of 16 | Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | |||||||||||
| 23 November – Qatif | ||||||||||||||
| Eastern Flames | 18 | |||||||||||||
| 29 December – Qatif | ||||||||||||||
| Saham | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Eastern Flames | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 24 November – Khobar | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Qadsiah | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Qadsiah | 7 | |||||||||||||
| 9 February – Khobar | ||||||||||||||
| Najmat Jeddah | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Qadsiah | 2 | |||||||||||||
| 23 November – Taif | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli | 3 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Amal | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 30 December – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Nassr | 9 | |||||||||||||
| Al Nassr | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 23 November – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli (a.e.t.) | 4 | |||||||||||||
| Al Bayraq | 1 | |||||||||||||
| 28 March – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli | 17 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Ahli | 3 | |||||||||||||
| 24 November – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Shabab | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Hilal | 4 | |||||||||||||
| 30 December – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| NEOM | 0 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Hilal | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 23 November – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Shabab | 2 | |||||||||||||
| Jeddah Club | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 9 February – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Shabab | 8 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Shabab | 5 | |||||||||||||
| 24 November – Riyadh | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ittihad | 4 | Third place play-off | ||||||||||||
| Al-Hmmah | 0 | |||||||||||||
| 30 December – Jeddah | 27 March – Riyadh | |||||||||||||
| Al-Riyadh | 5 | |||||||||||||
| Al-Riyadh | 0 | Al-Qadsiah | 0 (5) | |||||||||||
| 24 November – Jeddah | ||||||||||||||
| Al-Ittihad | 5 | Al-Ittihad | 0 (4) | |||||||||||
| Al-Ittihad | w/o | |||||||||||||
| United Eagles | ||||||||||||||
Round of 16
editThere will be eight matches in the Round of 16, split over two days on November 23 and 24, 2023. The draw took place on September 6, 2023.
| 23 November 2023 | Eastern Flames | 18–0 | Saham | Qatif |
| 16:00 | Stadium: Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz Stadium Referee: Ihsan Al-Shabeeb |
| 23 November 2023 | Al-Amal | 0–9 | Al Nassr | Taif |
| 16:00 | Stadium: King Fahd Sports City Referee: Ali Al-Qahtani |
| 23 November 2023 | Jeddah Club | 0–8 | Al-Shabab | Jeddah |
| 19:00 | Stadium: Sports Hall at King Abdullah Sports City Referee: Anoud Al-Asmari |
| 23 November 2023 | Al Bayraq | 1–17 | Al-Ahli | Riyadh |
| 20:00 |
|
|
Stadium: Inaya Medical Colleges Stadium Referee: Reem Al-Dawsari |
| 24 November 2023 | Al Qadsiah | 7–0 | Najmat Jeddah | Khobar |
| 16:00 | Stadium: Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium Referee: Mohammed Al-Hamdi |
| 24 November 2023 | Al Hilal | 4–0 | Al-Suqoor | Riyadh |
| 16:00 | Stadium: Inaya Medical Colleges Stadium Referee: Abdullah Al-Nassar |
| 24 November 2023 | Al-Ittihad | Cancelled | United Eagles | Jeddah |
| 19:00 | Stadium: Al-Ittihad Club Stadium Referee: Hibbah Al-Owaidi | |||
| Note: United Eagles withdrew from the matchday one day earlier, citing unforeseen circumstances. | ||||
| 24 November 2023 | Al-Hmmah | 0–5 | Al-Riyadh | Riyadh |
| 20:00 | Stadium: Inaya Medical Colleges Stadium Referee: Reem Al-Bishi |
Quarter-finals
editIn the quarter-finals, four matches were played as follows: the winner of match 1 hosted the winner of match 2, the winner of match 3 hosted the winner of match 4, the winner of match 5 hosted the winner of match 6, and the winner of match 8 hosted the winner of match 7.
| 29 December 2023 | Eastern Flames | 0–3 | Al Qadsiah | Dammam |
| 16:00 | Stadium: Prince Fahd bin Salman Stadium |
| 30 December 2023 | Al Hilal | 0–2 | Al-Shabab | Riyadh |
| 16:00 | Stadium: Inaya Medical Colleges Stadium Referee: Nasser Al-Khanfour |
| 30 December 2023 | Al Nassr | 3–4 (a.e.t.) | Al-Ahli | Riyadh |
| 19:00 | Stadium: Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium |
| 30 December 2023 | Al-Ittihad | 5–0 | Al-Riyadh | Jeddah |
| 19:00 | Stadium: Al-Ittihad Club Stadium |
Semi-finals
editTwo matches were played in the semi-finals on 9 February 2024, made up of the four winning teams from the quarter-finals.
| 9 February 2024 | Al Qadsiah | 2–3 | Al-Ahli | Khobar |
| 16:00 |
|
Stadium: Al-Qadsiah Club Stadium |
| 9 February 2024 | Al-Shabab | 5–4 | Al-Ittihad | Riyadh |
| 19:00 | Stadium: Al-Shabab Club Stadium |
Third place play-off
editThird-place match play-off was played on 27 March 2024 in Riyadh.
| 27 March 2024 | Al Qadsiah | 0–0 (a.e.t.) (5–4 p) | Al-Ittihad | Riyadh |
| 22:00 | Stadium: Prince Faisal bin Fahd Sports City Referee: Mosad Al-Meshari | |||
| Penalties | ||||
Final
editThe final was played at Kingdom Arena on 28 March 2024. This was the stadium's first-ever women's football game.[5]
          Al-Ahli
|
     Al-Shabab
|
|
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Assistant referees:
Ekaterina Chernova (Russia)[6]
Irina Chechenina (Russia)[6]
Fourth official:
Heba Al-Owedi
Top scorers
edit
Prize money
editThe Saudi Football Federation has approved the financial prizes for the Saudi Women's Cup. The champion received 750,000 Saudi Riyals, the second-place holder 500,000 Saudi Riyals, and the third-place holder 200,000 Saudi Riyals.[7]
| Place | Teams | Amount (in riyal) |
|---|---|---|
| Champions | 1 | 750,000 SAR |
| Runners-up | 1 | 500,000 SAR |
| Third place | 1 | 200,000 SAR |
| Total | 3 | 1,450,000 SAR |
References
edit- ^ "Next November marks the kickoff of the inaugural edition of the Saudi Women's Cup". sabq.org (in Arabic). 6 September 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ "The inaugural edition of the Saudi Women's Cup kicks off". saff.com.sa (in Arabic). Saudi Arabian Football Federation. 6 September 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ "Al-Ahli crowned champions of inaugural Saudi Women's Cup". arabnews.com. 29 March 2024. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
- ^ "Sports / The inaugural edition of the Saudi Women's Cup kicks off". spa.gov.sa (in Arabic). 6 September 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
- ^ ""المملكة أرينا" يستضيف نهائي كأس السعودية للسيدات" [The Kingdom Arena hosts the final of the Saudi Women's Cup]. kooora.com (in Arabic). Riyan Al-Jidani. 20 March 2024. Retrieved 22 March 2024.
- ^ a b c "Российская бригада арбитров отработает финал женского кубка Саудовской Аравии" [The Russian team of referees will officiate the final of the women's cup of Saudi Arabia.]. rfs.ru (in Russian). Russian Football Union. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
- ^ "The SAFF Women's Cup kicks off today". alwatan.com.sa (in Arabic). 22 November 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.