Al-Hilal are already the most decorated club in Saudi Arabia and all of Asia, but their global profile is about to go stratospheric with the signing of Lionel Messi.
Reports in France say the Argentine World Cup winner will sign a contract worth a staggering £522million with the Riyadh-based club when he leaves Paris Saint-Germain this summer.
If the move is completed, it raises the intriguing scenario of both Messi and Al-Nassr‘s Cristiano Ronaldo playing in the same city at bitter rivals next season.
Historically, Al-Hilal are the bigger and more successful club. Their 65-year existence has seen them win a record 18 Saudi Professional League titles as well as four AFC Champions League crowns.
Their last continental success came in 2021 when they beat South Korean club Pohang Steelers 2-0 in the final, adding to previous triumphs in 1991, 2000 and 2019.
The Argentine has reportedly signed a massive £522million contract with Al-Hilal – where he will come into direct competition with Al-Nassr’s Cristiano Ronaldo once again
The Al-Hilal fans turned out in force for their recent derby with Al-Nassr but average attendances at the King Fahd Stadium remain quite low
Portuguese star Ronaldo is attempting to lead Al-Nassr to the Saudi Pro League title having signed for the club after his acrimonious departure from Manchester United
Al-Hilal also reached the latest final, losing 2-1 on aggregate over two legs to Japanese outfit Urawa Red Diamonds in an elongated edition of the tournament owing to a schedule shift.
That was the fifth time they have reached the Champions League final and lost.
They also gave Real Madrid a few problems in the FIFA Club World Cup final in Morocco back in February, eventually losing 5-3.
The current domestic campaign has been a let-down, however. Al-Hilal are only fourth in the Pro League table and, with just five games left, are out of the running for a fourth consecutive title win.
That looks to be going the way of their other big rivals, Al-Ittihad from Jeddah, but at least Al-Hilal recently had the satisfaction of denting Ronaldo’s title ambitions with a 2-0 win over Al-Nassr.
That was the game Ronaldo appeared to grab his crotch in response to Al-Hilal fans who were taunting him with chants of ‘Messi, Messi.’
Earlier, Ronaldo took out Gustavo Cuellar with a ‘chokehold’ straight out of the WWE ring, earning himself a booking from English referee Michael Oliver.
But Ronaldo could actually have been playing in Al-Hilal’s blue colours had things worked out differently following his acrimonious exit from Manchester United in December.
Ronaldo courted controversy when he appeared to grab his crotch in response to Al-Hilal fans shouting ‘Messi, Messi’ in his direction during Al-Nassr’s recent 2-0 loss
Cristiano Ronaldo leaps onto Al-Hilal’s Gustavo Cuellar before wrapping his right arm around his neck in something more akin to a WWE move
The forward then pulled back to wrestle him to the ground before picking up a yellow card
A frustrated Ronaldo was booked by Michael Oliver following the chokehold last month
Al-Hilal made the first move to sign the Portuguese star as early as last summer and, on paper, they would have been a more natural destination given their pedigree.
But Al-Hilal were serving a transfer ban after Mohamed Kanno, the Saudi national team midfielder, extended his contract having agreed to join Al-Nassr.
The ban left Al-Hilal powerless to act as Ronaldo signed for their rivals instead but bringing in Messi isn’t a bad riposte.
They play their football at the 68,000-capacity King Fahd International Stadium, which also stages most national team fixtures and is even playable in the FIFA games.
But low attendances mean most of their home games are played out to a backdrop of empty seats.
Their average league crowd this season is 9,517 and one match back in January attracted just 3,714 spectators. Despite the obvious attraction of Ronaldo, the recent derby was watched by only 24,674.
No doubt Messi’s arrival will entice plenty of floating voters and certainly more so than the current Al-Hilal line-up.
The stand-out name for European football fans is the former Manchester United and current Nigeria striker Odion Ighalo, who joined in January 2022 following a year at another Saudi club, Al-Shabab.
Ighalo, 33, finds the Saudi League much to his liking, with his tally of 18 goals this season second only to the Moroccan Abderrazak Hamdallah of leaders Al-Ittihad.
Former Manchester United striker Odion Ighalo currently leads the attack for Al-Hilal
Ighalo is consoled after Al-Hilal lost last weekend’s AFC Champions League final to Japanese club Urawa Red Diamonds
Messi wouldn’t be the only Argentine in the squad, which also features erstwhile Football Manager wonderkid Luciano Vietto, while close followers of the Qatar World Cup will recognise a few names from the Saudi team.
12 Al-Hilal players made the squad, with Saudi’s two scorers in that famous 2-1 win over eventual champions Argentina – Saleh Al-Shehri and Salem Al-Dawsari – both coming from the club.
Vietto, Colombian Cuellar and Peruvian Andre Carrillo are all Spanish speakers to help Messi settle in but the vast majority of the squad are homegrown.
The coach is also Argentinean. Ramon Diaz, 63, formerly played for River Plate, Napoli, Fiorentina and Inter Milan as a striker.
As a coach, he has been through three spells at River, two at San Lorenzo, two years with Paraguay and, unexpectedly, a year in League Two with Oxford United in 2004-05.
The good news for Al-Hilal is that their place in next season’s AFC Champions League is assured. Their success in recent editions of the tournament means Saudi Arabia gets four spots – three directly into the group phase and another into the play-offs.
The Al-Hilal team line up for the recent second leg of the AFC Champions League final – they were defeated 1-0 on the day and 2-1 on aggregate
Saudi Arabia international Nasser Al-Dawsari shakes hands with Al-Hilal coach Ramon Diaz
Al-Dawsari celebrates after scoring in Saudi Arabia’s famous World Cup win over Argentina
Because the competition is reverting to an autumn-to-spring schedule rather than spring-to-autumn, Al-Hilal qualify as the 2021-22 Saudi champions.
They could also have qualified by winning the Saudi King Cup when they take on Al-Wehda this Friday.
Messi has won the European Champions League three times and would no doubt love to win the Asian version too.
He could be joined in doing so by his former Barcelona team-mates Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, who are also being linked to Al-Hilal.
Messi, of course, already has close ties with Saudi. He makes a reported £25m-a-year for working as a tourism ambassador for the country.
It was an unauthorised trip to Riyadh on what was meant to be a day off that landed him in hot water at PSG last week.
Visiting with his wife Antonella – who apparently has reservations about moving to the country – and sons Ciro and Mateo, they posed for a nice set of pictures which no doubt will soon adorn the Saudi holiday brochures.
Messi was pictured holding a falcon, playing the local board game Carrom, trying out some palm-weaving and playing arcade games at an amusement park.
When Ronaldo arrived in the country earlier this year, no stone was left unturned in making him feel welcome.
An exterior view of Al-Hilal’s home – the 68,000-capacity King Fahd Stadium in Riyadh
The Saudi club pushed Real Madrid hard in February’s FIFA Club World Cup final, losing 5-3
He stayed in the luxury Kingdom Suite at the Four Seasons Hotel, enjoying sweeping views of Riyadh and plenty of haute cuisine on the room service. The bill for his stay was estimated at £250,000.
Now Ronaldo has moved into more permanent accommodation, Al-Hilal could put Messi and his entourage up there as well.
If Messi’s contact is worth £522m, it will dwarf the £175m-a-year Ronaldo is making down the road at Al-Nassr. It should also cover anything from the mini-bar.
