Saudi Arabia’s ambition to become one of the world’s leading destinations for major sporting events has suffered another setback. On 3 November, the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) announced that it was postponing the 2027 Asian Cup because of logistical difficulties and travel disruption arising from the situation in the region. Saudi Arabia remains the host, but the tournament, originally scheduled for 7 January to 5 February 2027, is now set to run from 23 December 2027 to 21 January 2028, subject to FIFA approval.
The change has already affected domestic football. The Saudi Pro League postponed matchweek 13 and said it would consult clubs before finalising its revised fixture list. Yasser Al-Misehal, chair of the Asian Cup’s local organising committee, maintained that the country had been ready to host in January: “We had completed our preparations to welcome teams and fans from across Asia in January in line with the approved plans.” Football Australia, meanwhile, backed the postponement in the interests of teams, officials and supporters.
Travel disruption put the original dates in doubt
Between 8 and 25 October, 4,071 of the 4,736 scheduled flights at King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh were cancelled, around 86%, according to Cirium data published by ‘Reuters’. The airport was among the targets of Houthi attacks. For a tournament bringing together 24 national teams across eight stadiums in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar, the disruption called into question whether teams, officials and supporters could make reliable travel plans.
The timing of the AFC’s response also warrants scrutiny. In mid-October, its president, Salman bin Ibrahim Al Khalifa, acknowledged that the tournament might have to be postponed and suggested a decision could wait until the end of November. The local organising committee was still working to the original dates. Speaking later in Tokyo, Japan Football Association president Tsuneyasu Miyamoto warned that the security situation made it difficult to stage the tournament in January. In South Korea, the professional footballers’ association called for player and supporter safety to come first. The warnings made clear that having the venues ready did little to resolve concerns among those expected to travel.
Postponements, cancellations and changes of venue
The Asian Cup is the latest in a series of changes to the Saudi sporting calendar. In January, the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA) and the Saudi Olympic and Paralympic Committee announced that the Asian Winter Games planned for Trojena, part of the NEOM development, would be postponed. In February, the OCA awarded the 2029 edition to Almaty, Kazakhstan. The Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games will still take place in Riyadh, but have moved from December 2026 to 28 March–8 April 2027. Organisers said they had reviewed logistics and scheduling to allow more delegations to take part.
The changes extend to other sports. The Formula 1 Saudi Arabian Grand Prix and the UCI Urban Cycling World Championships were cancelled. Golf’s Saudi International and the FIFAe Finals in Jeddah were postponed without replacement dates being announced at the time, while the Six Kings Slam tennis exhibition moved from October to December. Rally Saudi Arabia was dropped from the 2026 World Rally Championship (WRC) calendar but remained a round of the Middle East Rally Championship. The Asian Cup retains its host and its place on the continental calendar, with kick-off now scheduled nearly a year later than planned.
Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund reviews its investments
Separately, the Public Investment Fund (PIF) is reassessing some of its sporting investments. It announced that it would stop funding LIV Golf after the 2026 season because the long-term commitment no longer fitted its investment priorities. In April, it also agreed to sell its 70% stake in Al-Hilal to Kingdom Holding Company, describing the deal as part of a strategy to improve returns and redeploy capital within the Saudi economy. Both moves point to a more selective approach by the fund, driven by investment priorities separate from the security and travel concerns behind the Asian Cup postponement. Elsewhere, the Saudi Arabia Snooker Masters was cancelled after two editions despite an initial ten-year agreement, and the 2026 WTA Finals moved from Riyadh to Indian Wells, California, before the end of the city’s planned three-edition run.
The next step for the Asian Cup is FIFA approval of the proposed dates, which is needed to make player release mandatory for clubs. The revised fixture list is also yet to be published. It will determine how the 24 national teams plan their training camps and travel for the first edition of the tournament to be held in Saudi Arabia.
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