The 2016–17 Saudi Professional League (also known as the Jameel League for sponsorship reasons) was the 41st season of

Saudi Pro League The Saudi Pro League (SPL), also known as the Roshn Saudi League (RSL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Saudi Arabia and the highest level of the Saudi football league system. The SPL is regarded as th ...

, the top Saudi professional league for association football clubs, since its inception in 1976. The season started on 11 August 2016 and concluded on 4 May 2017. Al-Hilal won their fourteenth league title, and first since the 2010–11 season, with two matches to spare following a 2–1 win over Al-Shabab on 20 April. The defending champions were Al-Ahli who finished as runners-up.

Al-Ettifaq Al-Ettifaq Club (), commonly known as Al-Ettifaq or simply Ettifaq, is a professional football club in Dammam, Saudi Arabia, which competes in the Saudi Pro League. The club was established by the merger of three Dammam-based clubs in 1945. Al- ...

and

Al-Batin Bāṭin or baten () literally means "inner", "inward", "hidden", etc. The Quran, for instance, has a hidden meaning in contrast to its exterior or apparent meaning, the zahir (zaher). Sufis believe that every individual has a batin in the worl ...

entered as the two promoted teams from the

2015–16 Saudi First Division 2015–16 Saudi First Division League was the 39th season of the Saudi First Division League since its establishment in 1976. The season started on 21 August 2015 and concluded on 23 April 2016. On 23 April 2016, Al-Mujazzal won the league title ...

Teams

The league comprises 14 teams, 11 from the 2015–16 campaign, as well as two teams promoted from the 2015–16 First Division and the

relegation play-off Promotion and relegation is used by sports leagues as a process where teams can move up and down among divisions in a league system, based on their performance over a season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are sometimes call ...

winners. On the final day of the season Al-Mojzel won the First Division title and their first-ever promotion to the top flight after a 3–2 win against Al-Jeel.

were also promoted after they finished in 2nd place, it would be their first participation in the Pro League since the 2013–14 season. The two promoted teams replaced

Najran Najran ( '), is a city in southwestern Saudi Arabia. It is the capital of Najran Province. Today, the city of Najran is one of the fastest-growing cities in the kingdom of Saudi Arabia. As of the 2022 census, the city population was 381,431, wi ...

and Hajer.

Al-Raed Al Raed Saudi Football Club ( ''Nādī ar-Rāʾid''; ) is a Saudi football club based in Buraidah, and the first of its kind in the Qassim region of Saudi Arabia. One of the club's notable founders is Abdulaziz Al-Aboudi. Established in 1954, Al R ...

were relegation play-off winners. On 3 August 2016, Al-Mojzel were stripped of their title and instead got relegated to the Second Division due to a

match fixing In organized sports, match fixing (also known as game fixing, race fixing, throwing, rigging, hippodroming, or more generally sports fixing) is the act of playing or officiating a contest with the intention of achieving a predetermined result, v ...

scandal. The

SAFF South Asian Football Federation (SAFF) is an association of the Association football, football playing nations in South Asia. Incorporated in 1997, it is a regional subsidiary of Asian Football Confederation. The members of the association are ...

decided to promote

instead.

Stadiums and locations

;Notes

Personnel and kits

Managerial changes

Foreign players

The number of foreign players is limited to 4 per team, and should not be a goalkeeper. Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the mid-season transfer window.

League table

Positions by round

The following table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve the chronological evolution, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. If a club from the Saudi Professional League wins the

King Cup The King Cup (sometimes spelled King's Cup) (), officially known as The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup (), is the Saudi Arabian football knockout cup competition. The King's Cup is the second-oldest knockout competition in Saudi Arabian ...

, they will qualify for the AFC Champions League, unless they have already qualified for it through their league position. In this case, an additional AFC Champions League group stage berth will be given to the 3rd placed team, and the AFC Champions League play-off round spot will be given to 4th.

Results

Season progress

Relegation play-offs

which finished 12th will face

, the 3rd-placed 2016–17 Saudi First Division side for a two-legged play-off. Al-Batin beat Najran 3–2 on aggregate.

First leg

Second leg

Statistics

Top scorers

Top assists

Hat-tricks

⁴ Player scored four goals

Clean sheets

Discipline

Player

* Most yellow cards: 11 **

Yassin Barnawi Yaseen Omar Barnawi (; also spelled Yassin; born October 1, 1993) is a Saudi Arabian football player who plays as a right back for Al-Faisaly. He joined Al-Qadisiyah FC Al-Qadsiah () is a Saudi Arabian professional football club that compet ...

(Al-Qadsiah) * Most red cards: 2 ** Hatim Belal (Al-Wehda) ** Adama François Sene (Al-Khaleej)

Club

* Most yellow cards: 59 ** Al-Raed * Most red cards: 5 ** Al-Khaleej ** Al-Wehda

Attendances

By round

Source:

By team

^† ^†

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:2016-17 Saudi Professional League Saudi Pro League seasons

Saudi Professional League The Saudi Pro League (SPL), also known as the Roshn Saudi League (RSL) for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Saudi Arabia and the highest level of the Saudi football league system. The SPL is regarded as th ...