DUBAI: The Kingdom’s clubs spent $407 million in the 2026 summer transfer window while the Saudi Pro League has remained sixth globally with a total expenditure of $579 million so far this year, Asharq Al-Awsat reported recently.
Al-Hilal led the spending with $239 million, while Cristiano Ronaldo is the highest-paid player with a weekly salary of $4.62 million, as clubs continued the investment momentum that began in 2023.
The figures for the 2026 summer transfer market confirmed the strong SPL presence in the global football industry, despite a decline in spending compared to the summer of 2025.
The figures were provided in the Asharq Al-Awsat – Saudi Arabia Summer 2026 report, the fourteenth edition of the sport’s finance series provided by Asharq Bloomberg.
Saudi clubs spent $407 million on international contracts during the summer transfer window alone, compared to revenues of $105 million from selling players abroad.
The Kingdom accounted for 78.7 percent of the total spending by Asian clubs on international transfers at $517 million, and represented 66 percent of the continent’s total revenue from player sales.
Despite a 26.3 percent decrease in international spending compared to the summer of 2025, the figures reflect the momentum that Saudi football has witnessed since the launch of the Public Investment Fund-led project to attract top foreign players in the summer of 2023.
After spending on international transfers reached only $26.9 million in the summer of 2022, it jumped to $875 million in 2023, $431 million in 2024, $552 million in 2025, and $407 million in 2026.
This places the SPL seventh globally in spending on international transfers during that period, behind the leagues of England, Italy, Spain, Germany, France, and Turkiye.
In total, the spending of Saudi clubs on international contracts during the last five summer transfer windows exceeded $2.29 billion, compared to revenues of $254.5 million during the same period.
The report showed that the Saudi league also ranked third globally in net spending during the summer of 2026, with a total of $464 million.
Taking 2026 into account, including the earlier winter transfer window, the SPL ranked sixth globally in terms of spending with a total of $579.5 million, behind the English Premier League, Italy’s Serie A, the German Bundesliga, Spain’s La Liga and the French Ligue 1.
Al-Hilal continued to lead the spending among Saudi clubs during the summer transfer window, injecting $239 million into the contracting market. It also recorded the highest net local spending of $214.8 million, ranking fifth globally during the 2026 summer transfer window.
Saudi clubs were involved in several high-profile deals, including the transfer of Brazilian winger Gabriel Martinelli to Al-Hilal for $81.3 million, Dutchman Tijani Reynders to Al-Qadsiah for $70.8 million, and Englishman Ollie Watkins to Al-Hilal for $67.8 million.