Elite Joy League: Al-Hazm begin the defence of their title against Al-Jabalain, as Al-Hilal and Al-Nassr face the promoted sides
The Saudi Under-21 League returns for its second edition
A new season and fresh excitement await football fans in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, with the start of the Joy Elite League (the Saudi Under-21 League) in the 2026-2027 season.
The tournament made a big splash in its debut campaign. Now it returns for a second season with every side harbouring new ambitions, from those chasing a repeat of champions Al-Hazm's surprise to those desperate to avoid the fate of relegated Al-Shabab.
Opening-round matches of the Roshn Saudi Pro League
The opening match will be on Sunday 23 August, when Al-Ettifaq, who topped the league phase last season, travel to face Al-Tadamon, newly promoted to the Joy League, at the Prince Abdullah bin Abdulaziz bin Musaad City Stadium in Arar.
Five other matches follow that same day. Al-Ahli travel to face Al-Feiha at the Al-Majmaah Sports City Stadium in Al-Majmaah, Al-Taawoun host Al-Najma in Buraidah, and Al-Riyadh travel to face Al-Wehda at the King Abdulaziz Sports City Stadium in Makkah.
Neom also host Al-Orobah at the Al-Watani Club Stadium in Tabuk, and Al-Hazem, the title holders, travel to face Al-Jabalain at the Prince Abdulaziz bin Musaad bin Jalawi Stadium in Hail.
Five more matches arrive on the second day, Monday 24 August. Al-Qadsiah host Al-Khaleej at the Prince Saud bin Jalawi Sports City Stadium, and Al-Fateh, last season's runners-up, host Al-Ansar, newly promoted to the Joy League, at the Al-Awwal Finance Field Stadium in Al-Ahsa.
Al-Hilal, meanwhile, travel to face Al-Faisaly, newly promoted to the Joy League, at the Al-Majmaah Sports City Stadium in Al-Majmaah, while Al-Kholood host Al-Okhdood at the Al-Hazem Club Stadium in Al-Rass, and Al-Ittihad travel to face Damac in Khamis Mushait.
Al-Nassr, by contrast, will not play their first-round match until 18 December, when they travel to face Al-Watan, newly promoted to the Joy League, at the King Faisal Sports City Stadium in Jazan.
Al-Hazm: the champion and a theoretically easy start
All eyes will be on Al-Hazm, champions of the previous Joyy Elite League, as they open their campaign away to Al-Jabalain at the Prince Abdulaziz bin Musaed bin Jalawi Stadium in Hail.
On paper, the fixture looks straightforward for Al-Hazm. Al-Jabalain struggled badly throughout last season's Saudi Under-21 League.
Eighteenth place was where Al-Jabalain ended the campaign, on 22 points from 7 wins, one draw and 12 defeats. That left them just two points clear of Al-Adalah, the first side relegated to the regional divisions.
Al-Hazm hardly enjoyed a vintage league stage themselves last time out, finishing ninth on 33 points from 10 wins, 3 draws and 7 defeats.
What set them apart was their ruthlessness in the knockout rounds. They knocked out Al-Akhdoud in the play-off, then league leaders Al-Ettifaq in the quarter-finals, before seeing off Al-Hilal in the semi-finals and beating Al-Fateh in the final.
Al-Ahly: a dream start to a different season
Al-Ahli, meanwhile, open the new Joy Elite League campaign desperate to avoid a repeat of last season when they travel to Al-Feiha at the Al-Majma'ah Sports City Stadium.
They were one of the unpleasant surprises of the last campaign. Inconsistent results dogged them from start to finish, and more than once they flirted with a relegation scrap.
Fifteenth place with 24 points was their reward, taken from 6 wins, 6 draws and 8 defeats. They never even reached the play-off, let alone got past the league stage.
Al-Feiha, by contrast, were one of the happy surprises. Twelfth place with 29 points, built on 8 wins, 5 draws and 7 defeats, earned them a spot in the play-off stage.
Al-Qadsiah knocked them out, true enough. But Al-Feiha produced great performances along the way, none better than a second leg they came within a whisker of winning.
Al-Hilal: a stellar start in the Roshen Pro League
Al-Hilal, meanwhile, open their Joy Elite League campaign against another newly promoted side. They travel to face Al-Faisaly at Al-Majma'ah Sports City Stadium.
Oddly, Al-Hilal's under-21s begin their Joy League campaign with the very same opening fixture the first team faced in the Roshn League, when they hosted the newly promoted Al-Faisaly at Kingdom Arena in the opening round.
Fans hope the youngsters can repeat what the seniors managed in that 4-2 win, only with sharper performances to make up for last season's shock in the Joy League.
Al-Hilal were among the closest favourites for the title. They finished the league stage second on 40 points, from 11 wins, seven draws and two defeats, just one point behind leaders Al-Ettifaq.
Having settled the Clasico against Al-Ittihad in the quarter-finals, "the Boss" then let the title slip in the semi-finals against Al-Hazm. They drew the first leg 2-2 before losing the return 2-0.
Al-Ittihad: the beginning against Damac
Al-Ittihad, meanwhile, kick off their season in the Joy Elite League away to Damac in Khamis Mushait.
Neither side lived up to expectations last term. "The Dean" in particular blew hot and cold all season, and their form dipped badly after the turn of the year.
Al-Ittihad finished the league stage seventh on 34 points from 10 wins, 4 draws and 6 defeats. They then crashed out at the quarter-final stage, losing 3-2 on aggregate to Al-Hilal.
Damac endured a far tougher campaign. They limped home in 17th on 23 points from 6 wins, 5 draws and 9 defeats, just 3 points clear of Al-Adalah, the first of the relegated clubs.
Both teams will treat the game as an early gauge of where they stand this season. That goes double for "the Tigers", with their supporters demanding something special.
Al-Nassr: a late close to the round
Al-Nassr, meanwhile, will close out the round next December when they face newly promoted Al-Watan at the King Faisal Sports City Stadium in Jazan.
Fresh ambitions drive Al-Nassr into the new season. They lost their way in the title race during the closing stages of last season despite fielding some of the finest players in the competition.
Al-Alami finished last season third in the league stage on 38 points, the product of 11 wins, 5 draws and 4 defeats.
The knockout rounds delivered the shock. They crashed out early at the quarter-final stage, beaten 7-3 on aggregate by Al-Fateh over two legs.
Talents of the calibre of Haidar Abdulkarim, Abdulmalik Al-Jaber, Saad Haqawi and Asem Mohammed could not lift them. The capital club let their fans down and blew hot and cold all season.
Now their supporters want something different when the team begin their campaign in the current edition of the Saudi under-21 league.
Elite air-league system
Twenty-four clubs contest the Joy Elite League. Twenty of them featured last season, with 4 clubs promoted from the Regional League replacing the 4 that went down.
The competition splits into two main stages. First comes the "league stage", where each team plays 20 matches, divided equally between 10 at home and 10 away, using the points system familiar from the major leagues.
Next is the decisive "play-off stage". The top four in the standings qualify directly for the quarter-finals, while the sides from fifth down to twelfth fight through a knockout play-off to determine the other four quarter-finalists.
From the play-off round onwards, ties run on a knockout basis over two legs, all the way to the final that crowns the champion in a grand footballing celebration.
Key features of last season
Al-Hazem lifted the first-ever Joy Elite League title last season, beating Al-Fateh 3-1 in the final.
Four teams went down to the regional league after finishing in the bottom four during the league stage: Al-Adalah, Al-Raed, Al-Bukayriyah and Al-Shabab.
Individual honours went to Al-Taawoun striker Bassem Al-Oraini, who claimed the Golden Boot with 20 goals. Al-Qadsiah's Abdullah Al-Muhaisen took the award for best goalkeeper.
"Kooora" named Al-Hilal star Abdulaziz Al-Jarmoosh the best player of the last edition, a nod to the outstanding form he showed with "Al-Zaeem".
