Al Nassr Football Club: Squad, Ronaldo and African Kick Off Times

Al Nassr are a football club from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, founded on 24 October 1955. Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Al Nassr on 30 December 2022. Their colours are yellow and blue; their name is Arabic for 'victory', and King Saud University Stadium has been their home since 2020. South African readers may know football as soccer; supporters in Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana and Uganda can use the fixture module to find their local kick off times.

The fixtures, results and squad modules provide changing information, while the sections below explain the club’s history, African players and Riyadh rivalry.

Where Is the Latest Al Nassr News and Fixture Talk?

For Al Nassr fixture information, consult the Al Nassr fixtures. Check the listed details when planning to follow a match from Nigeria, Kenya, South Africa, Ghana or Uganda.

How Is the Al Nassr Squad Set Out?

Use the squad module to check registered players and their positions. Treat the squad list as a guide to roles. A place in the squad does not itself indicate a starting role for a particular match.

Where Do Al Nassr Stand in the League and in Asia?

The competition modules show standings and results. Consult the league table, or log, for Al Nassr’s standing this season. Use the competition module to check Al Nassr’s Asian participation this season.

How Can You Watch Al Nassr From Africa, and What Time Is Kick Off?

Riyadh uses GMT+3, matching EAT in Kenya and Uganda. For a Riyadh start of 9pm, the corresponding times are 7pm WAT in Nigeria, 9pm EAT in Kenya and Uganda, 8pm SAST in South Africa and 6pm GMT in Ghana. When arranging to watch, check the broadcaster’s schedule for your country and the fixture’s listed start time.

Who Are Al Nassr, and What Have They Won?

Al Nassr were founded in Riyadh on 24 October 1955, and the name means 'victory' in Arabic. The colours carry their own story, with yellow for the desert sands and blue for the waters around them. The two nicknames show how the club sees itself: Al Alami, 'The Global One', and Faris Najd, 'Knight of Najd', after the central region of Arabia that includes Riyadh. The club earned the global label long before Ronaldo arrived. Al Nassr played at the first FIFA Club World Championship in 2000, finished sixth overall and won the FIFA Fair Play Award at that tournament.

At home, the league titles include 2013-14, 2014-15 and 2018-19, and in Asia the club won the Asian Cup Winners' Cup in 1997-98 and the Asian Super Cup in 1998. Those followed GCC Club Championships in 1996 and 1997, adding two regional titles in consecutive years. Al Nassr won the Arab Club Champions Cup in 2023, and that win belongs to the Ronaldo story told below. The table sets the honours out with their years, so you can settle any argument about dates in seconds.

When Did Ronaldo Join Al Nassr, and What Has He Done There?

Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Al Nassr on 30 December 2022 on a two and a half year contract, which was later extended. Across Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana, people have searched for the club as 'Ronaldo's club' or 'CR7 club' ever since. The numbers that followed were large. The IFFHS named him the world's best goalscorer for 2023 with 54 goals, and in 2023-24 he won the Saudi league golden boot and set a single season league scoring record. In the same season, Al Nassr reached a club record of 82 points.

In my opinion, the match that defines his time in Riyadh is the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup final. He scored both Al Nassr goals to win the trophy and finished as the tournament's top scorer with six. It could be argued that the final gave every Ronaldo fan in a Lagos viewing centre an answer ready for the Messi crowd, although that argument never stays settled for long. For squad information this season, consult the squad module.

Why Is Al Nassr v Al Hilal the Game Riyadh Waits For?

Al Nassr v Al Hilal is the Riyadh derby, a meeting of the capital's two biggest clubs, and it divides the city much as a Sunday between Arsenal and Chelsea can divide a Lagos household. The derby has often carried a trophy with it. Al Nassr beat Al Hilal in the 2008 Federation Cup, and the two met again in the 2013-14 Crown Prince Cup final. So, when the fixture appears in the module, read it as more than three points, because the bragging rights in Riyadh last until the next meeting.

Outside Riyadh, the games against the big Jeddah clubs, Al Ittihad and Al Ahli, carry the next most weight, because those meetings often shape the top of the league. In a competition built around a handful of strong squads, points taken from a direct rival count twice: once for you and once against them. That is why the head to head module matters as much as the table in the closing weeks of a season.

For African fans, the derby is the Saudi game most likely to be watched alongside a Premier League evening, and Al Nassr vs Al Hilal is searched most in Nigeria and South Africa. Consult the head to head module when comparing the clubs. When the derby falls on a weekend evening, check all four time zones, because a Riyadh night game can clash with an English kick-off in Lagos and Johannesburg.

Which African Players Have Played for Al Nassr?

Al Nassr have a strong North and West African thread in their recent history. Morocco's Abderrazak Hamdallah played for the club from 2018 to 2021 and scored 77 league goals, and his countryman Nordin Amrabat was also part of that era. Tunisia's Yassine Sallem has been in the squad too. The best known is Senegal's Sadio Mané, whose following stretches across West Africa, and Nigerian and Ghanaian fans often compare him with the forwards in their own national teams. Use the squad module to explore the club’s African representation this season. For Lagos, the Super Eagles question is a happy one: which of our forwards would suit a side built around stars?

Where Do Al Nassr Play Their Home Games?

Al Nassr have played their home games at King Saud University Stadium in Riyadh since 2020. Before that, the ground was Al Hilal's home from 2018 to 2020. That gives the derby a neat twist, since both clubs have called the same stadium home. It is a little like two Lagos families renting the same flat a few years apart, with each insisting the place was really theirs.

When comparing results, distinguish matches played in Riyadh from away fixtures. A title challenge in Saudi Arabia, as anywhere else, is usually built on winning at home and taking something from the road.