On the 13th of February, an important milestone in the history of Saudi sport was portrayed in Alhilal FC playing their very first game in their own home ground, which marked a crucial step towards the privatization of Saudi clubs. Alhilal played host to the UAE giants Alain, in the Asian Champion’s league group opener. Alhilal limped into this game carrying the disappointment of losing last campaign’s final while missing several star players. Alain walked in with their best player Omar Abdulrahman missing out due to injury but given magnitude of Alhilal’s injuries from Carlos Eduardo to Omar Khirbin, Alain were the slight favorites on the pitch.
The real game however, took place in the stands. Fans started flocking to the KSU stadium by PM, 4 hours before the 8:20 PM kickoff just to pump up the atmosphere with passionate energy. The game kicked off with sheering pressure from the away side, almost overwhelming Alhilal to concede on several occasions. Fans of all backgrounds, ages, and most importantly genders were present to cheer Alhilal to walk away with a precious point. Alhilal played a decent game given the circumstances, won possession by 64% to 36%, and even had more shots (12) but only got 1 on target emphasizing the importance of the missing firepower. The game would have been a disappointment in Alhilal’s book but given the welcoming atmosphere the fans went out of their way to set, by holding a tifo that said “Welcome Home” and cheering the players throughout the 90 minutes. Alhilal fans will look back at this game beyond the 1 point kept at home, they will remember this as the first point of many; because in football - just like in life -when you fall, you pick yourself up and chase the ball.