SURJ Sports Investments, the sports arm of Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF), has partnered with the digital-focused soccer venture Kings League for the launch of a new regional tournament in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).
Kings League MENA is set to launch later in 2025, becoming the seventh regional chapter of the Kings League portfolio, and will feature celebrity team owners, technological integration, and digital-focused community activations, similar to the league's other regional competitions.
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Saudi Arabia previously participated in the Kings League World Cup of Nations competition, which took place in January 2025 and drew over 100 million global views.
Speaking on the partnership, SURJ Sports Investments chief executive Danny Townsend stated: “Kings League MENA is unlike anything the region has seen. We’re bringing an entirely new model to market – one that celebrates football’s competitive spirit while embracing the energy of digital creators, fans, and youth culture.
The demographics of Saudi Arabia, where nearly 70% of the population is under 30, are also amenable to the Kings League concept, with 80% of the competition’s social media followers being under the age of 34.
He continued: “This venture reflects SURJ’s broader mandate to invest in sports IP and enablement platforms that deliver long-term returns, grow the ecosystem, and connect with the next generation of fans across the region.”
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By GlobalDataIn terms of broadcast coverage in the region, the obvious choice would seem to be DAZN MENA, the recently established joint venture streaming service founded following SURJ’s $1 billion investment into the global OTT streaming service DAZN.
DAZN has previously covered the Kings League in markets such as Australia and Japan, and as such, there exists a familiarity between the two.
Kings League chief executive Djamel Agaoua added: “Saudi Arabia is the perfect launchpad for a league that’s bold, fan-first, and digitally native. Together, we’re building a platform that fuses entertainment, sport, and digital culture – one that’s tailor-made for this region’s energy and ambition.”
Agaoua, formerly managing director for Europe and the Middle East at the National Basketball Association (NBA), was unveiled as the new Kings League CEO last October, with global growth one of his top priorities.
Earlier in 2025, Agaoua spoke to GlobalData Sport (Sportcal) about Kings League’s rising popularity and its growth aims, commenting: “We create new experiences that are difficult to create in traditional soccer – some fans will deliberately watch their rivals’ Kings League team because their favorite streamer is commentating.
“These kinds of situations are impossible in traditional football because of the way media deals are structured and because of the need for neutrality, but are possible here with our structure of more direct streamers.”
In terms of the tie-ups with the broadcast networks that Kings League does have, the CEO said that “the vast majority we have are low value for now. We select our partners based on the investment they are ready to make into marketing and explanation of the product, to reach out to new audiences.
“Our objective is to maximize reach – we have a strategy initially of distributing across free platforms like Twitch, YouTube, and TikTok, across our channels and our presidents’ channels, so we’re trying to maximize reach to make sure the product is available to the largest number.”
“The concept is really exciting and the sky is the limit – all 195 countries is our aim. Soccer is played everywhere, so it’s about prioritizing.”
