Arena Market: Saudi Arabia

“The Saudi government has plans to build venues all across the country,” says Iain Campbell, Oak View Group’s EVP Middle East and Africa. “Not just in Riyadh but Jeddah and across the nation. The number of new venues in the pipeline is very exciting.”

Indeed, the ambitious infrastructure plans in the kingdom have sparked considerable interest. Among the hoped-for new entertainment hotspots are the 45,000-cap Prince Mohammed bin Salman Stadium located in Qiddiya, an entertainment and tourism megaproject in Riyadh unveiled as part of the Vision 2030 masterplan.

The stadium, named after Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, will be capable of hosting some of the country’s biggest sports, entertainment, and cultural events, including, potentially, matches at the 2034 World Cup. It will serve as the home of Saudi Pro League clubs Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr and is projected to attract an estimated 7.6m annual visitors, with a retractable roof, pitch, and LED wall, and a lake and ice wall to cool the air inside.

Other coming developments include new stadiums in Riyadh and Dammam, as well as ASM Global’s 20,000-cap Jeddah Arena Airport City at King Abdulaziz International Airport, not to mention numerous other possible megaprojects with an entertainment component.

It’s all a mouth-watering prospect for the region’s most populous country’s young inhabitants and would turbo-charge the Gulf as a touring destination.

“Enthusiasm for sport and entertainment in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is phenomenal,” says Campbell.