The Saudi Pro League (SPL) has placed eighth among all football leagues in terms of foreign players represented in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16, with 11 players from the league still competing in the tournament. This was announced by the official SPL account as the knockout stage commenced.
Distribution of SPL Players Across Teams
Four teams in the Round of 16 had one SPL player each, while three teams boasted two or more players from the league. Notably, two of these teams faced each other: England and Mexico played a thrilling match at the Azteca Stadium. Al-Ahli’s Ivan Toney was the sole SPL representative for England, while Al-Qadsiah’s Julian Quinones played for Mexico and scored in the first half to level the game.
Egypt and France Contributions
Egypt featured Nabil Donga, who played for Al-Najma this season, and France had Al-Hilal’s Theo Hernandez in their squad.
Morocco and Brazil: Two Players Each
Morocco and Brazil each had two SPL players. For Morocco, Al-Hilal’s Yassine Bounou continued his stellar goalkeeping, keeping a clean sheet against Canada after his penalty heroics against the Netherlands. Marwan Saadane from Al-Fateh was also part of the Morocco squad. For Brazil, Jeddah rivals Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli each contributed one player: Fabinho and Roger Ibanez, respectively.
Portugal Leads with Three SPL Players
The team with the most foreign players from the SPL in the Round of 16 was Portugal, with three: Ruben Neves from Al-Hilal, Joao Felix from Al-Nassr, and Cristiano Ronaldo, also from Al-Nassr, who is the only player to have scored at six different World Cups.
Global League Rankings
The Premier League topped the rankings with 68 players, followed by La Liga with 37, Serie A with 34, Ligue 1 with 32, and the Bundesliga with 24. The MLS had 15 players, and the Brasileirao had 12. With 11 players, the SPL surpassed the Portuguese, Dutch, and Belgian leagues in terms of foreign player representation at the World Cup Round of 16.
