The inaugural edition of Riyadh Season resulted in a sizable increase in tourism during the period; the General Entertainment Authority estimated that the events collectively generated six billion riyals in revenue,[4] there were at least 11 million visitors to the city during the 66-day period, a 106% increase in flight bookings to the city (71% of which coming from other parts of the country), and a 240% increase in bookings to one, two, and three-star hotels.[5]
It returned for 2021–22, extended through March 2022.[6]
With COVID-19 restrictions eased, its opening ceremony (which featured a performance by American rapper Pitbull) was attended by 750,000 people in the boulevard district.[7]
The 2022 opening ceremony set a record for the largest number of drones simultaneously launching fireworks.[8][9] At least five million visitors attended events in the first two months of the period.[10]
In October 2024, sports streaming service DAZN reached an agreement with the General Entertainment Authority making it the exclusive broadcaster of all Riyadh Season-sponsored events, including international distribution rights to all of its boxing cards outside of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region.[11]
Structure
Riyadh Season is typically scheduled from October through March, falling between the early-winter and early-spring.
The first edition of the festival was launched on October 11, 2019 and was set to end on December 11, but it was extended to January 2020 after the number of visitors exceeded 10 million.[18]
On October 17, 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.[19]
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.[20]
The Taste theme originated in accordance with opening 31 restaurant from different cuisines all across the following zones:[20]
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 2023–2024
The fourth edition of Riyadh Season launched on October 28, 2023 with new identity and tagline ("Big Time") and title sponsorship from SNB.
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:
On 28 October 2023, the Tyson Fury vs. Francis Ngannou heavyweight boxing fight was held in Kingdom Arena (Boulevard Hall) to kick off the Riyadh Season. It was marketed as Battle of the Baddest.
The 2024 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 Al Hilal and Inter Miami, Al Nassr vs Inter Miami and Al Hilal vs Al Nassr was held on 29 January, 1 February and 8 February 2024 respectively at the Kingdom Arena (Boulevard Hall).[21][22] 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".[23]
On 24 February 2024, the mixed martial arts event PFL vs. Bellator: Champs was held outside the Kingdom Arena (Boulevard Hall).
On 8 March 2024, the Anthony Joshua vs. Francis Ngannou boxing match was held at the Kingdom Arena (Boulevard Hall). It was marketed as Knockout Chaos.
On 18 May 2024, the Tyson Fury vs. Oleksandr Usyk boxing match was held at the Kingdom Arena (Boulevard Hall). It was originally scheduled to be held in February 2024,[24] but was postponed after Fury was injured in training.[25] It was marketed as Ring of Fire.
PFL 10: Loughnane vs Khizriev the finale of the playoffs for all 2024 divisions was held at Al-Awwal Park (King Saudi University Stadium) on November 29, 2024.
The WBC Boxing Grand Prix tournament organised by the World Boxing Council in collaboration with Riyadh Season, which features elimination rounds across multiple weight-classes throughout the season in five phases from April 17 to December 20, 2025.[27]
Riyadh Season 2025–2026
The sixth edition of Riyadh Season launched in October.
The following events are taking place as part of 2025 Riyadh Season:
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
Saudi Arabia 
