A deadly strike on Saudi Arabia over the weekend is forcing a rapid reshuffle of the country's sporting calendar, with FIFA postponing its global esports finals and the Asian Football Confederation signalling it could push the 2027 Asian Cup back to 2028.
The strike on Riyadh's international airport on Saturday killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300, with Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement claiming responsibility in what has been described as the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.
FIFAe Finals postponed
FIFA and the Saudi Esports Federation announced on Thursday that the FIFAe Finals 2026, scheduled for Jeddah from October 16 to 25, has been postponed following the attacks. Organisers said the decision followed an assessment of recent developments in the region and their impact on the logistics needed to stage the tournament, adding that further announcements would come in due course.
Japan and Brazil had already withdrawn their esports teams on Saturday after assessing the situation in the host country, leaving organisers little room to proceed as planned.
Asian Cup faces possible delay
The uncertainty now extends to the biggest event on Saudi Arabia's sporting horizon. The Asian Football Confederation said it remains open to delaying the Asian Cup until 2028 if necessary. The continental tournament is scheduled to kick off on January 7 next year across venues in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
Tennis has already moved. Organisers of the Six Kings Slam exhibition tournament, originally scheduled for this October, confirmed on Wednesday that it will now be held from December 27 to 30, citing the organisational and logistical challenges of hosting amid the current circumstances. Golf's Asian Tour, meanwhile, said it is monitoring developments ahead of next month's Saudi International in Riyadh.
The wave of postponements and pullouts underlines how quickly security concerns can ripple through a calendar Saudi Arabia has spent years building as a global sports destination.
Sources:
- AFC open to postponing Asian Cup as attacks in Saudi Arabia disrupt sports calendar
- Sports-FIFA postpones FIFAe Finals in Saudi Arabia following attacks
The strike on Riyadh's international airport on Saturday killed at least 12 people and wounded more than 300, with Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi movement claiming responsibility in what has been described as the deadliest attack in Saudi Arabia in more than a decade.
FIFAe Finals postponed
FIFA and the Saudi Esports Federation announced on Thursday that the FIFAe Finals 2026, scheduled for Jeddah from October 16 to 25, has been postponed following the attacks. Organisers said the decision followed an assessment of recent developments in the region and their impact on the logistics needed to stage the tournament, adding that further announcements would come in due course.
Japan and Brazil had already withdrawn their esports teams on Saturday after assessing the situation in the host country, leaving organisers little room to proceed as planned.
Asian Cup faces possible delay
The uncertainty now extends to the biggest event on Saudi Arabia's sporting horizon. The Asian Football Confederation said it remains open to delaying the Asian Cup until 2028 if necessary. The continental tournament is scheduled to kick off on January 7 next year across venues in Riyadh, Jeddah and Al Khobar.
Tennis has already moved. Organisers of the Six Kings Slam exhibition tournament, originally scheduled for this October, confirmed on Wednesday that it will now be held from December 27 to 30, citing the organisational and logistical challenges of hosting amid the current circumstances. Golf's Asian Tour, meanwhile, said it is monitoring developments ahead of next month's Saudi International in Riyadh.
The wave of postponements and pullouts underlines how quickly security concerns can ripple through a calendar Saudi Arabia has spent years building as a global sports destination.
Sources:
- AFC open to postponing Asian Cup as attacks in Saudi Arabia disrupt sports calendar
- Sports-FIFA postpones FIFAe Finals in Saudi Arabia following attacks
