The Roshn Saudi League has been ranked 38th in the world by Opta, prompting debate in Saudi Arabia over how the competition is assessed despite its recent growth and recruitment of high-profile players and managers.
In an update published on 6 November 2026, the league received an average rating of 74.7 points. It was placed behind the Polish and Peruvian leagues, while the English Premier League headed the rankings, followed by the Spanish, German, Italian and French top flights.
The ranking has renewed questions over the criteria used to compare domestic competitions, particularly after the Roshn Saudi League attracted a number of internationally recognised stars in recent years.
Enrico Turchi, Opta’s representative in Italy, discussed the issue on the Saudi television programme Fi Al-Merma, presented by Batal Al-Qos, on Al Arabiya. He explained that Opta’s system did not simply measure the presence of elite players at a selection of clubs.
Instead, the assessment focuses on the overall competitiveness of a league, including how many teams possess an elite standard and their ability to raise the level of competition across the division.
Turchi said that having a small number of clubs with world-class players was not, by itself, enough to move a league higher in the rankings. The decisive factor was the average level of all the teams rather than the sporting or commercial value of its leading sides.
That means the presence of players such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Riyad Mahrez, along with those who followed them to the competition, is not considered a standalone measure of the Roshn Saudi League’s strength.
During the television discussion, Al-Qos challenged Turchi to name five clubs from the Peruvian league, which is ranked above the Saudi competition. Turchi was unable to provide the names.
The ranking debate came after Saudi broadcaster Walid Al-Farraj offered his own view on the depth of competition in the country’s top flight. He suggested that attendances should be an important measure, in response to a viewer who had asked why so much attention was given to Saudi Arabia’s “big four” clubs.
Speaking on his programme Rotana Sport with Walid on Rotana Khalijia on Saturday evening, Al-Farraj said: “The stands are empty. I respect and appreciate all the clubs, but do you think the 18 clubs in the league have the same influence?”
He added that only four Saudi clubs formed the foundation for “following, attendance, marketing and money”, while the others completed the league.
“Proving your presence is not by raising your voice, but by being present inside the stadium,” Al-Farraj said.
