The Riyadh Season (
Arabic: موسم الرياض,
romanized: mawsim ar-Riyāḍ) is an annual state-funded entertainment and sports festival, started as part of 11 entertainment festivals carried by Saudi Seasons initiative that was launched in 2019.[1] Riyadh Season starts in October and ends towards March during
winter and
spring in the
Saudi Arabia capital
Riyadh. In 2022, Riyadh Season attracted more than 5 million visitors within the first two months of its third edition.[2] As of 2023, Riyadh Season has 10
Guinness World Records certifications.[3][4]
According to the chairman of the General Entertainment Authority, the government generated 6 billion Saudi Riyals in revenues from the first edition of the festival in 2019.[10] After maximizing the capacity in the second edition in 2021, the opening ceremony of the festival was attended by 750,000 people in the boulevard district, which included a parade,
fireworks and a concert by
Pitbull.[11] In 2022, the opening ceremony of Riyadh Season was rewarded a Guinness Record certificate for "The most remote-operated multirotors/drones launching fireworks simultaneously".[12]
Riyadh Season 2019
The first edition of the festival was launched on 11 October 2019 and was set to end on 15 December, but it was extended to January 2020 after the number of visitors exceeded 10 million.[13] In 17 October 2019, the opening parade of the first edition of Riyadh Season was held in Riyadh Boulevard zone with an attendance of more than 600,000 visitors.[14] It included 100 events that took place at 12 different zones, and was hosted under seven themes and experiences: Joy, inspire, taste, explore, fantasy, speed and desert.[15] The Taste theme originated in accordance with opening 31 restaurant from different cuisines all across the following zones:[15]
The second edition of Riyadh Season was launched on 20 October 2021 and lasted until the end of March 2022. It lies in an area measuring 5.4 million square meters in which it hosts more than 7,000 events at 14 different zones.[16]
The third edition of Riyadh Season was launched on 21 October 2022 and lasted until March 2023. This included 8,500 activity days. This season had a principal of 15 zones in the
Riyadh Boulevard and represented many cultures such as:
America
France
Greece
Italy
India
China
Spain
Morocco
Mexico.
The 2022 Riyadh Season also included Riyadh Season Cup, a friendly football match between
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) and Riyadh XI (combined
Al Hilal and
Al Nassr all-star team) held at
King Fahd International Stadium on 19 January 2023. The game received global attention as the game pitted
Lionel Messi and
Cristiano Ronaldo, two of the greatest football players in the world and the subject of
intense debate, directly against each other for the first time since 2020, as Messi played for PSG and Ronaldo joined Al Nassr days prior to the friendly match. PSG won the match 5–4.
Riyadh Season 2023
The fourth edition of Riyadh Season launched on 28 October 2023 with new identity and tagline ("Big Time") and title sponsorship from
SNB. The opener event,
Battle of Baddest, featuring
Tyson Fury and
Francis Ngannou, was held at Boulevard Hall on the same day.
This year's Riyadh Season was marked with the addition of Boulevard Hall (named
Kingdom Arena for sponsorship reasons), an indoor arena with a
FIFA and
AFC-approved football pitch capable of hosting various types of events with more than 40,000 spectators in attendance (27,000 for football matches). It was fully opened in January 2024 and serves as the new home ground of
Al Hilal.
The following events took place as part of 2023 Riyadh Season:
Soundstorm Festival by MDLBEAST was held between 14–16 December 2023.
On 23 December 2023, a boxing event billed as the
Day of Reckoning, featuring Anthony Joshua vs Otto Wallin, Deontay Wilder vs Joseph Parker, and Dmitry Bivol vs Lyndon Arthur was held at the Kingdom Arena.
The Riyadh Season Cup football tournament featuring
Al Hilal,
Al Nassr and
Inter Miami, in a single-
round robin group, where the table toppers were crowned champions. The matches between Inter Miami and Al Hilal, Al Nassr vs Inter Miami and Al Hilal vs Al Nassr was held on 29 January, 1 February and 8 February 2023 respectively.[17][18] All three of these clubs signed well-known world-class players in 2023, with
Paris Saint-Germain players
Lionel Messi and
Neymar transferring to Inter Miami and Al Hilal, respectively, while
Cristiano Ronaldo transferred from
Manchester United to Al Nassr. Due to Messi and Ronaldo both being 36 and 38 years old respectively, it is likely the last time
the two will play against each other in a match, leading many to dub it "The Last Dance".
On 24 February 2024, the
PFL vs. Bellator Champions mixed martial arts event was held at the Kingdom Arena.
Riyadh Season secured front-of-shirt sponsorship with
Serie A club
AS Roma, worth €8 million per year, to promote its series of events and
Saudi tourism globally.