RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s sports sector could surpass its projected $22.4 billion end-of-decade value as institutional expansion, infrastructure investment and private sector participation accelerate under Vision 2030, according to sports law expert Francesca Petriccione.
The Kingdom’s sports industry is currently estimated at roughly SR32 billion ($8.52 billion), with projections suggesting it could contribute around $16.5 billion annually to the gross domestic product by the end of the decade, driven by large-scale infrastructure projects, professional league development and growing participation rates.
According to a report released in December 2024 by SURJ Sports Investments, a company under the Public Investment Fund, the sector could be valued at above $22billion by 2030.
Petriccione is bullish over that figure, and said: “For me, we can go also beyond that number.”
She added that Saudi Arabia’s sports economy is expanding beyond elite football and major tournaments into a broader commercial ecosystem spanning media rights, tourism, infrastructure and human capital.
