Saudi Arabia at the CONCACAF Gold Cup

Firas Al-Buraikan with American midfielder Sebastian Berhalter during Saudi Arabia's 1–0 loss to the United States on 19 June 2025.

The CONCACAF Gold Cup is a major association football tournament in the Americas, generally featuring teams from North America, Central America, and the Caribbean. Between 1963 and 1989, the tournament was known as the CONCACAF Championship.[1] Though it is a regional tournament, nations from other federations have been invited as guests for select editions of the tournament.[2]

Saudi Arabia is a member of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC), and regularly competes in the AFC Asian Cup. On 19 December 2024, the Saudi Arabia national team announced that it would compete in both the 2025 and 2027 CONCACAF Gold Cups, only eight days after the country was awarded the hosting rights for the 2034 FIFA World Cup.[3] They became the eighth guest country to compete at the CONCACAF Gold Cup, and the third from Asia, after South Korea in 2000 and 2002, and Qatar in 2021 and 2023.[2][4]

In the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup, they were drawn into Group D alongside hosts the United States, Trinidad and Tobago, and Haiti.[5] The team beat Haiti 1–0 in their opening match, thanks to a penalty scored by Saleh Al-Shehri.[6] After that victory, they continued the first round with an 1–0 loss to the United States[7] and a 1–1 draw with Trinidad and Tobago.[8] In the quarter-finals, they were drawn against defending champions Mexico in Arizona, where they lost 2–0, thanks to a goal from Alexis Vega and an own goal by Abdullah Madu.[9]

Overview

CONCACAF Gold Cup record
Year Round Pos. Pld W D L GF GA
CanadaUnited States 2025Quarter-finals8th411224
2027Invited
TotalQuarter-finals2/29411224

2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Squad

Saudi Arabia's 60-man provisional squad list was announced by CONCACAF on May 19, 2025,[10] with the final 25-man squad being announced on June 5, 2025, 10 days before their opening match.[11]

Group stage

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1  United States (H) 3 3 0 0 8 1 +7 9 Advance to knockout stage
2  Saudi Arabia 3 1 1 1 2 2 0 4
3  Trinidad and Tobago 3 0 2 1 2 7 −5 2
4  Haiti 3 0 1 2 2 4 −2 1
Source: CONCACAF
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(H) Co-host
Haiti 0–1 Saudi Arabia
Report
Attendance: 7,736
Saudi Arabia 0–1 United States
Report
Attendance: 11,727
Referee: Marco Ortíz (Mexico)
Saudi Arabia 1–1 Trinidad and Tobago
 Report
Attendance: 35,000

Quarter-finals

Mexico 2–0 Saudi Arabia
 Report
Attendance: 45,255
Referee: Lukasz Szpala (United States)

Overall head-to-head record

Opponent Pld W D L GF GA GD Win %
 Haiti 110010+1100.00
 Mexico 100102−2000.00
 Trinidad and Tobago 101011+0000.00
 United States 100101−1000.00
Total 411224−2025.00
Source[12]

Controversy

The decision to announce Saudi Arabia as guests for 2025 and 2027 came four months after CONCACAF announced an investment deal with the Public Investment Fund (PIF), Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund.[13] The Human Rights Watch—citing the country's murder of journalists and the repression of both women's rights and human rights activists[14]—described the deal as sportswashing.[2] Though CONCACAF frequently invited guest countries in the late 1990s and early 2000s, Qatar's invitation to compete in 2021, before its 2022 FIFA World Cup, was the first in 16 years.[15] In addition to the investments of the PIF, Saudi Arabia's invitation coincided with Saudi Aramco becoming the tournament's primary energy sponsor.[15]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Gold Cup 101: What it is, why it matters, and how to follow along this summer". mlssoccer. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 Austin, Daniel (26 June 2025). "Concacaf Gold Cup: Saudi Arabia participation in tournament explained". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  3. ↑ Mohamed, Taha (19 December 2024). "Saudi Arabia invited to compete at next two Concacaf Gold Cups". Reuters. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  4. ↑ Anzidei, Melanie (19 June 2025). "Explained: Why USMNT opponent Saudi Arabia is in the Concacaf Gold Cup". The New York Times. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  5. ↑ Maurer, Pablo (11 April 2025). "Concacaf Gold Cup draw: USMNT gets guest Saudi Arabia in favorable group". The New York Times. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  6. ↑ "CONCACAF Gold Cup 2025 - Al Shehri steers Saudi Arabia past Haiti". AFC. 16 June 2025. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  7. ↑ "Chris Richards fires USA over Saudi Arabia into Gold Cup quarter-finals". The Guardian. 20 June 2025. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  8. ↑ "Saudi Arabia vs Trinidad and Tobago: Concacaf Gold Cup stats & head-to-head". BBC Sport. 23 June 2025. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  9. ↑ Brandt, David (29 June 2025). "Alexis Vega helps Mexico beat Saudi Arabia, advance to Gold Cup semifinals". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 12 May 2026.
  10. ↑ "2025 Gold Cup Preliminary Rosters" (PDF). CONCACAF. 19 May 2025. Retrieved 19 May 2025.
  11. ↑ "2025 Concacaf Gold Cup Group Stage final rosters announced". Miami: CONCACAF. 5 June 2025. Archived from the original on 9 June 2025. Retrieved 5 June 2025.
  12. ↑ Di Maggio, Roberto; Lugo, Erik Francisco; Stokkermans, Karel; Toma, Razvan (9 July 2025). "Gold Cup". www.rsssf.org. Archived from the original on 15 April 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2026.
  13. ↑ "Concacaf and PIF announce partnership to further elevate football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean". www.pif.gov.sa. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  14. ↑ Hall, Matthew (22 November 2024). "Saudi wealth fund's expansion into North American soccer raises questions". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 May 2026.
  15. 1 2 Millar, Colin; Sheldon, Dan (19 December 2024). "Saudi Arabia to play in 2025 and 2027 Gold Cup as CONCACAF's guest participant". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 19 May 2026.
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