How Grassroots Sport Could Shape Saudi Arabia’s Next Sporting Chapter

When the world thinks of sport in Saudi Arabia, the headlines are dominated by spectacle. World championship boxing bouts in Riyadh. Cristiano Ronaldo and global stars transforming the Saudi Pro League. LIV Golf’s multi-billion dollar disruption of professional golf. The world’s richest horse race. Even ownership of Newcastle United FC. And of course, the FIFA World Cup in 2034, which is set to make Saudi Arabia the global epicentre of football for years to come.

These investments are bold and highly effective in putting the Kingdom on the global sporting map. Yet they represent only part of the story. Alongside the international headlines, Saudi Arabia is also investing heavily in grassroots sport, and that could prove to be its most important long-term achievement.

Mega Events Win Attention – But Not Always Authenticity

History suggests that while mega-events are powerful for visibility, they do not automatically guarantee sustainable sporting or tourism impact. The 2004 Athens Olympics left Greece with underutilised venues. The 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa generated a surge in interest but struggled to sustain momentum in sports tourism.

For nations embarking on the journey of building a culture of sport, the lesson is clear: large-scale events bring global attention, but the true long-term ambition has to be about building authenticity or legacy. Spectacle has real value, but it needs to be complemented by deeper participation.

The Hidden Story: Grassroots Investment in Saudi Arabia

This is the quieter but equally significant side of Saudi sport. The Kingdom’s government-supported federations are investing in combat sports, athletics, cycling, golf, triathlon, and more. New facilities, youth academies, women’s participation programmes, and community events are expanding opportunities for Saudis to take part.

A few examples illustrate this momentum:

• Women’s sport: Visibility is growing rapidly, supported by initiatives like the WTA Finals now hosted in Riyadh and the recent launch of the AWSN women’s sports channel in Saudi Arabia.
• Combat sports: The UFC’s debut in Riyadh in 2024 coincides with investment in judo, karate, taekwondo, and jiu-jitsu — disciplines already popular among Saudi youth.
• Cycling: In Riyadh, the Sports Boulevard project is creating over 80 km of cycling and pedestrian paths, including dedicated training routes and community hubs. This gives Saudi cyclists — from beginners to serious amateurs — purpose-built infrastructure that could eventually support visiting riders and events.
• Athletics: the Saudi Arabian Athletics Federation (SAAF) is scaling up programmes and events such as the Red Sea Marathon in Jeddah, part of a broader push to increase participation and raise standards. Together, these investments point to sports that are growing from the grassroots up, with potential to become tourism assets in the future.
• Golf: Beyond LIV Golf, federations and organisations such as Saudi Golf Federation and Golf Saudi are working to grow grassroots programmes to increase participation amongst the general population and underpin tourism interest in the sport.

These developments may not yet dominate international headlines, but they could prove central to creating an authentic Saudi sports culture which is rooted in community and participation as much as in spectacle.

Authenticity: The Bridge Between Sport and Tourism

Why does this matter for tourism? Because authenticity inevitably drives sustained visitor appeal. Around the world, grassroots sporting cultures have evolved into magnets for sports tourism. Some examples include:

• Eldoret, in Kenya’s Rift Valley, sits at 2,100m altitude and has produced dozens of Olympic and World Champions — including Eliud Kipchoge and Brigid Kosgei. Its high-altitude conditions, running camps like Iten’s High Altitude Training Centre, and daily local participation have made it a pilgrimage site for runners worldwide. The sports tourism impact results in thousands of recreational and elite athletes travelling annually to Eldoret and nearby Iten for training camps, cultural exchanges, and marathon preparation, creating a niche but globally recognised running tourism economy.
• Whistler in Canada transformed from a winter resort into the world’s premier mountain biking destination, with the Whistler Mountain Bike Park attracting over 120,000 riders annually. Events like Crankworx – launched in 2004 – have become the sport’s equivalent of the Olympics, rooted in a community of local riders who first pioneered the trails. From a sports tourism perspective, the town now hosts visitors from over 50 countries each summer, extending the tourism season beyond skiing and establishing Whistler as the global benchmark for integrated mountain sports tourism.
• Flagstaff, AZ, at 2,100m elevation, is home to Northern Arizona Elite and hosts training camps for athletes from across the US and abroad. Its combination of altitude, mild climate, and community running culture has made it a recognised endurance hub, featured by World Athletics and used by athletes preparing for global championships. As for the sports tourism impact, Flagstaff’s grassroots running culture supports a steady influx of visiting athletes, sports scientists, and recreational runners who combine training with local tourism, contributing significantly to the city’s year-round hospitality sector. In addition, the name recognition and brand developed by the Northern Arizona Elite team has attracted sponsorship from Hoka, who are one of the up and coming global footwear companies challenging dominant positions of Nike and Adidas.
• Spain’s Basque Country’s mountainous terrain and strong cycling identity are reinforced by events like the Itzulia Basque Country professional race and thousands of local cycling clubs. Cycling is part of daily life, with the region having one of the highest bike ownership rates in Europe and the Euskaltel-Euskadi team drawing its riders entirely from Basque communities. The region now attracts thousands of sport tourism cyclists annually, drawn by the authenticity of local routes, race heritage, and club hospitality – with many operators offering guided tours modelled on the professional racing routes.

Could Saudi Arabia Take a Similar Path?

These destinations show that when local participation meets global visibility, authentic sports cultures can evolve into tourism assets. Saudi Arabia now stands at a similar crossroads – its global investments have created awareness, but its growing grassroots base could define its true sporting identity.

Visitors may arrive to watch glamorous sporting events, but as community-level participation deepens, those same visitors may one day come not only to watch but to train, compete, and experience Saudi sport firsthand. That is how spectacle transforms into substance.

From Participation to Tourism Potential

The connection between grassroots sport and tourism is already well established elsewhere. In the UAE, grassroots golf development alongside world-class facilities helped create a thriving golf tourism market. Spain has leveraged its athletics and triathlon base to attract international training camps and endurance events.

Saudi Arabia could follow a similar trajectory. Across the Kingdom, facilities and federations are laying the foundations for participation-based tourism opportunities:

• Combat sports: Saudi Arabia’s climate and infrastructure make it ideally suited to indoor disciplines such as boxing, judo, taekwondo, and jiu-jitsu. Purpose-built, air-conditioned facilities allow year-round training and community programmes, enabling rapid growth from grassroots to elite levels. With rising youth participation and strong federation support, cities like Riyadh and Jeddah are well placed to host regional training camps and competitions that could attract visiting athletes.
• Athletics: Investment in track and field facilities continues to expand across multiple regions of the Kingdom. Areas such as Bisha, with its moderate highland climate, could offer particularly favourable conditions for endurance training — echoing how high-altitude centres elsewhere have evolved into sports tourism hubs.
• Endurance sports: Expanding triathlon, desert marathon, and cycling events are beginning to utilise Saudi Arabia’s landscapes to attract local and visiting athletes alike.
• Golf: Continued grassroots growth supports long-term ambitions to rival the UAE’s golf tourism ecosystem.

Each of these examples points to a future in which Saudi facilities are not just venues for events, but platforms for participation – creating a sports culture that visitors can join as well as observe.

Building Sports Clusters With Legacy in Mind

Just as tourism benefits from clustering, so too does sport. Around the world, multi-venue sports precincts have proven their ability to anchor both elite competition and community participation. From Aspire Zone in Qatar, which integrates training and education, to Melbourne Park in Australia, where international tournaments coexist with public recreation.

Saudi Arabia’s approach is beginning to reflect this integrated model. Qiddiya | القدية is being developed as a sports and entertainment cluster with motorsport at its core. Diriyah Company l شركة الدرعية has already shown how heritage and sport can coexist, hosting Formula E and major boxing events within a historic precinct. NEOM‘s Trojena aims to redefine winter and adventure sports in the region, blending community access with luxury tourism.

If grassroots participation becomes embedded within these clusters — through community facilities, youth academies, and open-access programming — they could evolve into living ecosystems that nurture both elite sport and local engagement. This is how infrastructure becomes legacy.

Closing Thought: From Spectacle to Substance

Saudi Arabia’s global sports investments have already reshaped its image on the world stage. Yet the most enduring legacy may come not from its marquee events, but from the everyday participation of its people. Grassroots sport has the potential to create authentic sporting cultures that connect communities, attract visitors, and sustain the nation’s sporting future.

Spectators will always come for the stars. But the measure of success — and the magnet for tourism — will lie in how many choose to stay and play.

About the Author Steven Rice is a tourism, sport and leisure consultant who has worked with national tourism bodies, giga-projects, and private sector leaders across the Middle East and internationally. A former CEO of Ras Al Khaimah Tourism Development Authority, he has advised various government, corporate and private entities in the Middle East and Europe. He is Founder and CEO of Big Wheel Marketing, with offices in Ireland and the UAE.

Contact – steven@bigwheel.org