Feature-length Footballco film tells the inspiring story of Saudi Arabian Women’s Football

A new film produced by Footballco has been released to celebrate the rise of women’s football in Saudi Arabia and what it means to the pioneering players.

“Destined to Play: The Untold Story of Saudi Women's Football” was produced In conjunction with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF) and continues Footballco’s work in documentary filmmaking by telling the fascinating first chapter of the Saudi Arabian women’s national team.

With behind-the-scenes footage from matches and the players’ personal lives, the eye-opening film explores what playing for the national team means to those involved and how they are looking to inspire the country’s next generation of female footballers.

As well as producing the film, Footballco is leveraging its global football publishing business, including global football brand GOAL, Kooora (the most popular sports website in the Middle East) and its women’s football brand Indivisa to market the film globally.

Footballco Creative Director, Tom Brandhorst said: “This film took us on a real journey. One in which we discovered an amazing story yet to be told.

“While much of the attention in Saudi Arabia has been on the growth of the Saudi Pro League, we expect ‘Destined To Play’ to highlight the growth and importance of women’s football in a country that is truly obsessed with the sport.”

The documentary features a host of key players and technical director Monika Staab and Lamia Bahaian, the vice president of the SAFF

“Aalia AlRasheed, head of the women’s football department at SAFF said: ‘'Destined to Play' isn't just a film; it captures the early stages of our football journey with the women’s national team. We hope this documentary shows viewers a glimpse of our huge love for the game, our commitment, dedication and hopeful ambitions.”

Andy Jackson, Football’s VP of global football partnerships said: “This is an incredibly important story to tell and an exciting new project for Footballco as we expand the services we offer to rights holders to include long-form, video storytelling of this nature. Our ability to combine world-class content production with global, multi-language content promotion is unmatched and an incredibly compelling proposition.”

Women’s football started in Saudi Arabia in 2019 with the setting up of the Department of Women's Football Development and the Kingdom held its first women’s competition the following year.

Since 2019, the Kingdom has seen the establishment of the Futsal Women’s National Team, the first Women’s National Team, and the U-17 Women’s National Team.

The period has also seen the launch of a number of competitions, including the Women’s Community League (2020), SAFF’s Regional and National Women’s Football Championships (2021 - 2022) and the first season of the Women’s Premier and First Division Leagues (2022/2023).

The film was produced in partnership with Glance Productions and directed by John Ford.

Destined to Play: The Untold Story of Saudi Women's Football is available for streaming now on FIFA+