2011–12 Saudi Professional League
| Season | 2011–2012 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Al-Shabab (6th title) |
| Relegated |
Al-Ansar Al-Qadisiya |
| AFC Champions League |
Al-Shabab Al-Ahli Al-Hilal Al-Ettifaq |
| UAFA Club Cup |
Al-Fateh Al-Nassr |
| GCC Champions League |
Al-Faisaly Najran |
| Matches played | 182 |
| Goals scored | 537 (2.95 per match) |
| Top goalscorer |
Victor Simões Nasser Al-Shamrani (21 Goals) |
| Biggest home win | Al-Ittihad 7-0 Hajer |
| Biggest away win | Al-Qadisiya 0-8 Al-Ittihad |
| Highest scoring | Al-Qadisiya 4-5 Al-Hilal |
| Longest winning run | Al-Hilal 9 games |
| Longest unbeaten run | Al-Shabab 26 games |
| Longest losing run | Al-Ansar 17 games |
| Highest attendance |
22,996 Al-Hilal 4–0 Al-Ahli |
| Lowest attendance |
28 Al-Qadisiya 2–2 Al-Faisaly |
| Average attendance | 4,374 |
|
← 2010–11 2012–13 → | |
The 2011–12 Saudi Professional League (officially known as the Zain League, because of its sponsorship) was the 36th season of Saudi Professional League since its establishment in 1976.
Al-Hilal were once again the defending champions for this season, having won the previous two editions in 2009–10 and 2010–11 respectively. The season featured 12 teams from the 2010–11 and two new teams promoted from the 2010–11 First Division: Hajer and Al-Ansar who replace relegated Al-Wahda and Al Hazm.
On 14 April 2012, Al-Shabab won the title after a 1–1 away game with Al-Ahli. It was their first league title since 2006 and their sixth league title overall. Al-Qadisiyah and Al-Ansar were relegated.
Qualification and Prize money
The Top three teams of the league plus the winner of Champions Cup qualified for the AFC Asian Champions League.
The Top eight teams qualified for Champions Cup.
and The bottom two teams in the end of the season were relegated.
Prize money:
- First place: 2.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Second place: 1.5 million Saudi Riyals
- Third place: 1 million Saudi Riyals
Stadia and locations
| Club | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Ahli | Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium | 23.000 |
| Al-Ansar | Medina | Prince Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz Stadium | 20.000 |
| Al Fateh | Al-Hasa | Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium | 27.550 |
| Al-Hilal | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 67.000 |
| Al-Ettifaq | Dammam | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium | 26.000 |
| Al-Ittihad | Jeddah | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium | 23.000 |
| Al-Nasr | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 67.000 |
| Al Raed | Buraydah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium | 25.000 |
| Al-Shabab | Riyadh | King Fahd Stadium | 67.000 |
| Al-Qadisiya | Al Khubar | Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium | 20.100 |
| Najran SC | Najran | Al Akhdoud Club Stadium | 2.800 |
| Al-Faisaly | Harmah | Prince Salman Bin Abdulaziz Sport City Stadium | 7.000 |
| Al Taawon | Buraydah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium | 25.000 |
| Hajer | Al-Hasa | Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium | 27.550 |
Members clubs
Managerial changes
Managerial changes during the 2011-12 campaign.
Pre-season
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Replaced by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Shabab |  Enzo Trossero |
Contract not renewed [1] | .svg.png){kind=small} Michel Preud'homme |
| Al-Hilal | Gabriel Calderon |
Sacked [2] |  Sami Al Jaber |
| Al-Hilal | Sami Al Jaber |
Caretaker role ended |  Thomas Doll |
| Al-Nasr |  Dragan Skočić |
Sacked | Gustavo Costas |
| Ettifaq |  Youssef Zouaoui |
Contract ended [3] | Branko Ivanković |
| Al-Ahli |  Aleksandar Ilic |
Contract ended |  Karel Jarolím |
During the season
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Replaced by |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Ansar |  Blaz Sliskovic |
Resigned | Ayub Ghulam |
| Al-Ansar | Ayub Ghulam |
Caretaker role ended | Jalal Qaderi |
| Al Raed |  Eurico Gomes |
Sacked, Al Raed 2nd bottom of league | Hafez Al-Hoarbi |
| Al Raed | Hafez Al-Hoarbi |
Caretaker role ended | Ammar Souayah |
| Al Ittihad | Dimitri Davidovic |
Sacked [4] | Abdullah Gurab |
| Al-Nasr | Gustavo Costas |
Sacked | Ali Kamikh |
| Al-Nasr | Ali Kamikh |
Caretaker role ended |  Francisco Maturana |
| Al-Ittihad | Abdullah Gurab |
Caretaker role ended |  Matjaž Kek |
| Al Taawon |  Florin Motroc |
Resigned | Grigore Sichitiu |
| Al Taawon | Grigore Sichitiu |
Caretaker role ended | Srecko Juricic |
| Al Taawon | Srecko Juricic |
Sacked | Grigore Sichitiu |
| Al-Hilal | Thomas Doll |
Sacked | Heiko Bonon & Sami Al Jaber |
| Al-Hilal | Heiko Bonon & Sami Al Jaber |
Temporary mandate | Ivan Hasek [5] |
| Al Ittihad | Matjaž Kek |
Sacked [6] | Abdullah Gurab |
| Al-Ittihad | Abdullah Gurab |
Caretaker role ended [7] |  Raul Caneda |
| Ettifaq | Branko Ivanković |
Sacked [8] | Sameer Hilal |
| Al Taawon | Grigore Sichitiu |
Caretaker role ended |  Khalid Kamal |
League table
| Pos |
Team |
Pld |
W |
D |
L |
GF |
GA |
GD |
Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Al-Shabab (C) | 26 | 19 | 7 | 0 | 50 | 16 | +34 | 64 | AFC Champions League group stage 1 |
| 2 | Al-Ahli | 26 | 19 | 5 | 2 | 60 | 22 | +38 | 62 | |
| 3 | Al-Hilal | 26 | 18 | 6 | 2 | 58 | 22 | +36 | 60 | |
| 4 | Al-Ettifaq | 26 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 41 | 26 | +15 | 47 | |
| 5 | Al-Ittihad | 26 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 49 | 35 | +14 | 37 | |
| 6 | Al-Fateh | 26 | 10 | 7 | 9 | 37 | 41 | −4 | 37 | UAFA Club Cup |
| 7 | Al-Nassr | 26 | 10 | 5 | 11 | 39 | 37 | +2 | 35 | |
| 8 | Al-Faisaly | 26 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 36 | 41 | −5 | 30 | GCC Champions League |
| 9 | Najran | 26 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 34 | 49 | −15 | 30 | |
| 10 | Al-Raed | 26 | 8 | 4 | 14 | 28 | 39 | −11 | 28 | |
| 11 | Hajer | 26 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 23 | 45 | −22 | 25 | |
| 12 | Al-Taawon | 26 | 4 | 7 | 15 | 28 | 52 | −24 | 19 | |
| 13 | Al-Qadisiyah (R) | 26 | 4 | 6 | 16 | 34 | 52 | −18 | 18 | Relegation to First Division |
| 14 | Al-Ansar (R) | 26 | 3 | 1 | 22 | 19 | 60 | −41 | 10 |
Source: FIFA.COM، League Table
Rules for classification:
1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
1Al-Ettifaq secured qualification for the 2013 AFC Champions League due to Al-Ahli winning the 2012 King Cup of Champions
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Results
| Home \ Away[1] | ITT | HIL | AHI | SHB | NAS | ETT | HJR | ANS | NAJ | RAE | FAT | QAD | TWN | FSL |
| Al-Ittihad | 0–2 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 7–0 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 5–3 | 4–2 | |
| Al-Hilal | 1–1 | 4–0 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 3–1 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | |
| Al-Ahli | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 4–3 | 5–1 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 2–0 | |
| Al-Shabab | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 6–1 | 3–0 | 4–0 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | |
| Al-Nassr | 1–3 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 5–0 | 1–1 | |
| Ettifaq | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 5–1 | 1–2 | |
| Hajer | 0–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | |
| Al-Nassr | 1–3 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 2–1 | |
| Najran | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–4 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | |
| Al-Raed | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 1–2 | 1–4 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–4 | |
| Al-Fateh | 3–2 | 0–5 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–6 | 0–0 | 2–1 | |
| Al-Qadisiyah | 0–8 | 4–5 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | |
| Al-Taawon | 2–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 1–2 | |
| Al-Faisaly | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 |
Updated to games played on 18 April 2012.
Source: FIFA.com
Rules for classification:
1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored
(C) = Champion; (R) = Relegated; (P) = Promoted; (E) = Eliminated; (O) = Play-off winner; (A) = Advances to a further round.
Only applicable when the season is not finished:
(Q) = Qualified to the phase of tournament indicated; (TQ) = Qualified to tournament, but not yet to the particular phase indicated; (RQ) = Qualified to the relegation tournament indicated; (DQ) = Disqualified from tournament.
Season statistics
Top scorers
|
Assists table
|
References
- ↑ "Preud'Homme to coach Al Shabab". AFC. 14 June 2011. Retrieved 14 June 2011.
- ↑ "Al Hilal show Calderon the door". AFC. 19 June 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ↑ "Ivankovic is new Al Ittifaq coach". AFC. 22 July 2011. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
- ↑ "Al Ittihad dismiss Davidovic". AFC. 28 November 2011. Retrieved 28 November 2011.
- ↑ "Hasek set for Hilal hot seat". AFC. 23 January 2012. Retrieved 23 January 2012.
- ↑ "Al Ittihad call time on Kek". AFC. 8 February 2012. Retrieved 8 February 2012.
- ↑ "Raul Caneda unveiled as new Al Ittihad coach". Goal. 20 February 2012. Retrieved 20 February 2012.
- ↑ "Al Ettifaq sack coach Ivancovic". AFC. 30 April 2012. Retrieved 30 April 2012.
- 1 2 "Saudi League Statistics". slstat.com. slstat.com. Retrieved 14 October 2011.