Al Wehda FC (Arabic: نادي الوحدة لكرة القدم) is a Saudi Arabian professional association football club based in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, that competes in the Saudi First Division League, the second tier of the Saudi football league system.

Al Wehda
Full nameAl Wehda Football Club
NicknamesFursan Mecca (Knights of Mecca)
Al-Mared Al-Ahmar (The Red Giants)
Founded1 January 1916; 110 years ago (1916-01-01) as Al Mukhtalat Football Club
GroundKing Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium
Capacity38,000[1]
OwnerMinistry of Sport
PresidentSultan Azhar
Head coachRusmir Cviko
LeagueFirst Division League
2025–26First Division League, 10th of 18
Websitealwehdaclub.sa
Current season

History

edit

Early years (1916–1945)

edit

Al Wehda traces its origins to 1916, when it was established as Al Mukhtalat Club in the Hejaz Vilayet of the Ottoman Empire. The name Al Mukhtalat, meaning “inclusive” or “mixed,” reflected the club’s diverse composition, as it included both Saudi and non-Saudi players.

In 1945, the club briefly adopted the name Al Hizb (The Party) before being renamed Al Wehda (Unity). The change was made to commemorate the unification of Saudi Arabia under King Ibn Saud during World War I.[2]

Domestic success (1950s–1960s)

edit

Al Wehda won the 1957–58 edition of His Majesty's League, the predecessor to the modern Saudi Pro League, becoming the inaugural champions of Saudi Arabia’s top-flight football league.

In 1959–60, the club won the Crown Prince Cup. In 1966, it went on to win the King Cup, becoming the first team to lift the competition.[3]

Honours

edit

International record

edit

Overview

edit
As of 20 May 2021
Competition Pld W D L GF GA
AFC Champions League Elite 1 0 1 0 1 1
Arab Club Champions Cup 6 3 1 2 24 8
TOTAL 7 3 2 2 25 9

Record by country

edit
Country Pld W D L GF GA GD Win%
Algeria 411258−3025.00
Djibouti 2200190+19100.00
Iraq 101011+0000.00
TOTAL 7322259+16042.86

International record

edit

Matches

edit
Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2007–08 Arab Champions League R32 Djibouti CDE-Colas 11–0 8−0 19–0
R16 Algeria ES Sétif 1–1 1−3 2–4
2008–09 Arab Champions League R32 Algeria USM Alger 3–1 0−3 3–4
2021 AFC Champions League PO Iraq Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya 1–1 (2–3 p) 1–1 (2–3 p)

Current squad

edit
As of 1 August 2025[4][5]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  KSA Abdullah Al-Owaishir
2 DF  KSA Saeed Al-Muwallad
3 DF  KSA Hani Al-Sebyani
4 MF  ALG Mehdi Boudjemaa
5 DF  ALG Farouk Chafaï
6 DF  KSA Rawaf Al-Moqaadi
7 DF  KSA Adil Khadhari
11 FW  MLI Demba Diallo
12 MF  KSA Abdulaziz Makin
13 DF  KSA Mohammed Al-Sufyani
14 DF  KSA Abdulmohsen Fallatah
15 DF  KSA Hattan Asiri
16 MF  KSA Nawaf Al-Azizi
17 FW  KSA Sattam Al-Lehiyani
18 MF  KSA Mohammed Al-Qunayan
20 MF  KSA Khalid Majrashi
22 MF  KSA Abdulwahed Al-Nakhli (on loan from Al-Najma)
23 MF  KSA Abdulaziz Majrashi
No. Pos. Nation Player
24 MF  KSA Salem Al-Moqaadi
26 MF  KSA Munther Al-Nakhli (on loan from Al-Bukiryah)
28 FW  NOR Bjørn Maars Johnsen
29 MF  KSA Fahad Al-Taleb
30 MF  EGY Hazem Ismail
32 DF  KSA Masoud Bakheet
44 GK  KSA Abdulrahman Al-Shammari
47 GK  KSA Ahmed Al-Rashidi
53 DF  IRQ Ali Adnan
55 DF  KSA Saad Al-Qahtani
60 GK  KSA Khaled Al-Sherif
70 DF  KSA Ahmed Al-Muwallad
77 FW  KSA Murad Khadhari
79 MF  KSA Salman Al-Moasher
87 DF  KSA Ridha Amidou
88 GK  KSA Sultan Al-Harbi
90 MF  KSA Ammar Al-Najjar (on loan from Al-Najma)
99 FW  KSA Saif Al-Omari

Other players under contract

edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
33 DF  KSA Rakan Al-Harbi
No. Pos. Nation Player
DF  KSA Bandar Darwish

Out on loan

edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
49 DF  KSA Ali Al-Salem (on loan to Al-Khaleej)

Coaching staff

edit
Position Name
Head coachBosnia and Herzegovina Rusmir Cviko
Assistant coachBosnia and Herzegovina Bakir Serbo
Egypt Mahmoud Abbas
Saudi Arabia Osama Barnawi
Goalkeeper coachBosnia and Herzegovina Elvis Karic
Chief analystSaudi Arabia Saad Al-Dossari
DoctorSaudi Arabia Fahad Al-Menhali
PhysiotherapistSaudi Arabia Mohammed Al-Shalwi
Sports scientistKosovo Rustem Gashi
Director of footballSaudi Arabia Yassin Al-Zahrani
Technical directorSaudi Arabia Hazim Al-Freej

Managerial history

edit

See also

edit

References

edit
  1. "King Abdul Aziz Sport City Stadium". Saudi Pro League Statistics. Archived from the original on 16 August 2017. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  2. "Al Wehda Club History". Al Wehda Club. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  3. "Al Hilal's 21 league titles headline Saudi football's officially documented 123-year history". Saudi Gazette. Retrieved 28 May 2026.
  4. "Al-Wehda squad". kooora. Archived from the original on 1 May 2018. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
  5. "Al-Wehda squad 2018–19 season". slstat. Archived from the original on 5 January 2020. Retrieved 26 July 2018.
edit