How Serie A became a lifelong passion for generations of Saudi fans

For generations of Saudi football supporters, following Serie A has meant staying awake into the early hours, memorising the names of Italian clubs and star players, and debating results as passionately as if they involved teams from their own cities. A new documentary, Calcio… A Saudi Passion, tells how that interest developed into a lasting part of football culture in Saudi Arabia.

Produced by stc tv in collaboration with Footballco, the documentary traces a relationship that began in front of television screens and grew through the arrival of digital technology, online platforms and organised supporters’ groups before eventually reaching Saudi stadiums.

The film runs for about 20 minutes and looks back to a time when watching a Serie A match required patience and preparation. Supporters had to find out when games would be shown, set their alarms and stay up late to watch their favourite teams.

Over time, the connection went beyond simply following matches. Fans adopted clubs to support, formed friendships with people who shared their loyalties and developed rituals around each round of the Italian championship.

The documentary moves between Riyadh, Jeddah, Kuwait, Rome and Milan, presenting the same story from different perspectives. In Saudi Arabia, it meets supporters who experienced the early years of the passion, while in Italy it visits the home of the clubs and competition that helped create it.

It shows how a love of Serie A travelled thousands of kilometres before taking root among Saudi fans, many of whom preserved that enthusiasm for years and passed it on to their children.

The programme also revisits the era through figures whose names became closely associated with Serie A for Arab audiences. Hicham Khlifi, one of the best-known presenters of Italian football programmes in the Arab world, recalls how television coverage helped introduce the league’s clubs and players to viewers.

Commentator Khaled Al-Ghoul discusses the years in which his voice became associated with some of Serie A’s biggest matches. Michele Ciccarese, the Italian league’s commercial and marketing director, considers the importance of Saudi Arabia and the wider region to the competition’s present and future.

Saudi supporters feature prominently, from those who helped establish fan groups and took part in early online forums to a younger generation that discovered the same enthusiasm through digital platforms.

The rise of the internet changed the way followers connected. Forums and chat groups became meeting places for supporters of Juventus, Milan, Inter and Napoli before developing into more structured associations.

Matches gradually became social occasions. Fans met friends, wore club shirts, exchanged opinions, celebrated victories and shared the disappointment of defeats with others who supported the same teams.

The film follows supporters from two different generations to compare how Serie A was watched in the past with the way it is consumed today. Serie A is available to watch on stc tv.

Saudi Arabia’s hosting of the Italian Super Cup added another chapter to the story. For many supporters, it was the first opportunity to see Serie A players and clubs in person rather than only on television. Stands filled with Italian flags and shirts, while Saudi fans met supporters who had travelled from Italy, turning a relationship built from a distance into a live stadium experience.

The connection has also extended to the footballing side, with coaches and players moving from Serie A to the Saudi league and bringing their experience and ideas to a new environment.

Technology has made access to Italian football easier, but it has not diminished the supporters’ feelings towards the competition. Where fans once waited all week for a match and stayed awake to watch it, digital broadcasting now provides much quicker access to sports content.

The documentary highlights stc tv’s role in connecting generations. Younger viewers can follow Serie A more easily, while older supporters are reminded of a period when a match was an event anticipated throughout the week.

Its central message is that Serie A is no longer simply a European competition followed by Saudi fans. It has become part of the shared memory of entire generations: fathers watching matches with their sons, friends arguing over their favourite clubs, and children wearing shirts of teams whose cities they have yet to visit.

The viewing habits have changed, technology has advanced and generations have turned over. The relationship, however, remains intact. Calcio… A Saudi Passion presents a story that began behind television screens, moved into the real world and became a legacy passed from one generation to the next.