By

Al-Akhdar's Early Exit: A Wake-Up Call Before 2034 World Cup

Ahmed bin Mohammed Al-Ghamdi

Published: July 5, 2026 23:03 KSA

The early exit of the Saudi national team from the 2026 World Cup came as a major shock to Saudi sports fans, who had hoped for a more prominent and impactful participation, especially given the unlimited support and exceptional care that Saudi sports have received in recent years from the wise leadership, and the qualitative developments in Saudi football that have made the Saudi league the focus of the world's attention and a destination for stars, coaches, and experts from various countries.

Al-Akhdar entered the World Cup with high hopes and optimistic expectations of achieving results befitting the development of the Saudi sports system, but the reality was different. The draws against Uruguay and Cape Verde, and the heavy 4-0 loss to Spain, led to an early exit, turning feelings of optimism into frustration and disappointment in the football community. The magnitude of anger among fans today cannot be denied; expectations were extremely high, especially after the organizational and investment successes achieved by the Kingdom in sports, and the huge leap in the Saudi league in terms of technical, media, and marketing presence. Many believed that this renaissance would directly reflect on the national team's performance and results, but what happened confirmed that developing domestic competitions—though important—is not enough alone to build a team capable of competing globally.

It is important at this stage to have rational and realistic reactions, away from the quick fixes that some fans are accustomed to demanding after every failure. The problem cannot be reduced to changing a coach or dropping a group of players and blaming them entirely. These temporary solutions may give a false sense of action, but they do not address the roots of the problem nor guarantee it won't happen again. The real solution lies in building a strong and solid football foundation, starting from early age groups. Countries that achieve sustained success on the world stage did not get there through hasty decisions, but through long-term investment in sports academies, talent discovery programs, and organized work within schools and clubs. Hence, the need arises to expand talent discovery across all regions of the Kingdom and provide an appropriate environment to hone players' skills from a young age, according to the latest technical and scientific methods. Despite the bitterness of the early exit, the picture is not as bleak as some think. The Kingdom today stands before a historic opportunity that rarely repeats itself: preparing to host the 2034 World Cup. Eight years separate us from this major global event, which is enough time to build an integrated football project if we invest it wisely. The results of Al-Akhdar in the 2026 World Cup have sounded the alarm, but at the same time, they have given us a chance for review and correction. If current results have disappointed hopes, the future still holds many opportunities.

Opinion