Al Taawoun FC

Al-Taawoun
Full nameAl-Taawoun Football Club
NicknamesSukkari Al-Qassim (Sugar of Al-Qassim)
Al-Dhiyaab (The Wolves)
Founded1956; 70 years ago (1956)
GroundKing Abdullah Sport City Stadium,
Al-Taawoun Stadium, Al-Qassim, Saudi Arabia
Capacity25,000[1]
5,624
OwnerMinistry of Sport
ChairmanSaud Al-Rashoodi
Head coachPéricles Chamusca
LeagueSaudi Pro League
2024–25Pro League, 8th of 18
Websitealtaawounfc.com
Current season

Al-Taawoun FC (Arabic: نادي التعاون) is a Saudi Arabian professional football and multi-sports club based in Buraidah, Saudi Arabia, that competes in the Saudi Pro League, the top tier of the Saudi football league system.

The club plays its home matches at King Abdullah Sport City Stadium, located in the city of Buraidah, which it shares with city rivals Al-Raed, with whom it contests the Qassim Derby. Additionally, the club uses the smaller Al-Taawoun Stadium for less prominent fixtures. The name "Al Taawoun" translates to "cooperation" in Arabic.

History

Al-Taawoun were founded in 1956 under the name of "Al-Shabab" by their founder Saleh Al Wabili. Four years after the founding of the club, they were officially registered as a professional club in 1960.

On 25 May 1990, Al-Taawoun reached the 1990 king cup final to face Al-Nasser but eventually lost 0–2. By reaching the final, Al-Taawoun became the second Saudi First Division League side to reach the final after Al-Riyadh in 1978. In the 2009–10 season, Al-Taawoun won promotion to the Pro League for the first time in over thirteen years as runners-up in the first division. Their last appearance in the top flight was in the 1997-98 season. They have been playing consecutively in the Saudi Pro League since the 2010–2011 season.[2] On 29 May 2016, Al-Taawoun qualified to their debut AFC Champions League campaign for the first time ever by finishing fourth in the league during the 2015–16 season.[3]

Their best ever top-flight season came in the 2018–19 season when the club successfully challenged for the Asian Champions League spots, eventually finishing in third place in the Saudi Pro League, their highest ever league position to date. And to top off their season, Al-Taawoun reached the King Cup final by thrashing Al-Hilal 5–0 at the King Saud University Stadium in the semi-final, and went on to defeat Al-Ittihad 2–1 in the final to claim their first-ever top-flight trophy, with the winning goal coming in the 90th minute.[4] Al-Taawoun also became the first club from Al-Qassim Province to win the King Cup.

In the following season 2019–20, Al-Taawoun's performances were one of their worst in their league history. Al-Taawoun booked their spot in the 2019 super cup by winning the King Cup title the previous season. Al-Taawoun lost to Al-Nassr 4–5 in a penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw at the end of extra time. The club were almost relegated and needed a win in the final matchday against relegation threatened Al-Fayha, the highly tense match continued as a draw until the 91st minute when Mohammad Al-Sahlawi converted a cross with a tap in to make it 1-0 and avoid relegation in the final moments of the season. In the 2020–21 season Al-Taawoun reached their 3rd King Cup final in the 2020–21 edition to face Al-Faisaly, in the end Al-Faisaly won their first title after a 3–2 win over Al-Taawoun in the final on 27 May 2021.

Al-Taawoun qualified to the 2020 AFC Champions League as 2019 King Cup winners. Al-Taawoun finished the group as runners-up with a record of (3W,3L) to qualify to the knockout stages for the first time in their history. Al-Taawoun faced Al-Nassr in the round of 16 but eventually lost 0–1.

Honours

King's Cup

Saudi Super Cup

  • Runners-up (1): 2019

Saudi First Division League (tier 2)

  • Winners (1): 1996–97
  • Runners-up (2): 1994–95, 2009–10

Saudi Second Division League (tier 3)

  • Winners (1): 1977–78

Prince Faisal bin Fahd Cup for Division 1 and 2 Teams.[5]

  • Winners (4): 1996–97, 2000–01, 2007–08, 2008–09

Coaching staff

Position Staff
Head coach Brazil Péricles Chamusca
Assistant coach Brazil Cláudio Prates
Saudi Arabia Mohammed Al-Abdali
Goalkeeper coach Italy Francisco Gercosimo
Fitness coach Brazil Rodrigo Poletto
Youth Coach Syria Jehad Al-Hussien
Development coach Saudi Arabia Khaled Al-Dhefiri
Performance coach Saudi Arabia Thamer Al-Sahli
Match analysis Saudi Arabia Hassan Al-Dossari
Performance and Market Analyst Brazil Bruno Cianciarulo
Doctor Saudi Arabia Abdullah Bahusayn
Physiotherapist Portugal Tiago Guedes
Portugal Paulo Moreira
Sporting director Saudi Arabia Abdullah Al-Ahmed

Players

Current squad

As of January 2025[6]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  BRA Mailson
2 DF  KSA Mishal Al-Alaeli (on loan from Saudi Arabia Al-Ettifaq)
3 DF  BRA Andrei Girotto
5 DF  KSA Mohammed Mahzari
6 MF  BRA Vitão
7 MF  KSA Mohammed Al-Kuwaykibi
8 MF  BRA Flávio Medeiros
9 FW  KSA Abdulfattah Adam
10 FW  COL Roger Martínez
11 MF  NCL Angelo Fulgini (on loan from France Lens)
12 GK  KSA Abdulrahman Al-Ghamdi
13 GK  KSA Abdulquddus Atiah
15 MF  KSA Mohammed Al-Qahtani (on loan from Saudi Arabia Al-Hilal)
No. Pos. Nation Player
17 MF  KSA Mohammed Al-Aqel
18 MF  MAR Aschraf El Mahdioui (captain)
19 FW  ECU Cristhoper Zambrano (on loan from Ecuador Aucas)
20 FW  KSA Bassem Al-Arini
23 DF  KSA Waleed Al-Ahmed
26 DF  KSA Ibrahim Al-Shoeil
29 MF  KSA Ahmed Bahusayn
32 DF  KSA Muteb Al-Mufarrij
44 MF  KSA Abdulmalik Al-Marwani
55 DF  KSA Mohammed Waleed (on loan from Saudi Arabia Neom)
66 DF  KSA Bassam Al-Hurayji
77 MF  KSA Abdulelah Hawsawi (on loan from Saudi Arabia Al-Ittihad)
99 FW  GAM Musa Barrow

U21 squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
24 DF  SEN Moustapha Sémbène
25 GK  KSA Abdulrahman Al-Senaid
28 MF  KSA Turki Al-Shaifan
33 FW  KSA Anas Al-Ghamdi
37 MF  KSA Ibrahim Al-Hazmi
39 FW  KSA Ali Sharahili
No. Pos. Nation Player
49 MF  KSA Abdulrahman Al-Marwani
97 DF  KSA Ibrahim Al-Zahrani
DF  KSA Adeeb Al-Hassan
MF  SYR Bassam Al-Hamad
MF  KSA Adel Fallatah
FW  KSA Ghannam Al-Ghannam

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF  VEN Renné Rivas (on loan to United Arab Emirates Kalba)
No. Pos. Nation Player
93 DF  KSA Awn Al-Saluli (on loan to Saudi Arabia Neom)

International competitions

Overview

As of 15 April 2025
Competition Pld W D L GF GA
AFC Champions League Elite 20 6 4 10 25 34
AFC Champions League Two 12 6 4 2 20 14
GCC Champions League 5 1 4 0 7 6
Total 37 13 12 12 52 54

Record by country

Country Pld W D L GF GA GD Win%
Bahrain 2 2 0 0 5 3 +2 100.00
Iran 8 1 3 4 7 10 −3 012.50
Iraq 2 1 0 1 2 2 +0 050.00
Oman 2 1 1 0 3 2 +1 050.00
Qatar 8 3 4 1 15 12 +3 037.50
Saudi Arabia 1 0 0 1 0 1 −1 000.00
Syria 1 0 1 0 1 1 +0 000.00
Turkmenistan 2 2 0 0 6 1 +5 100.00
United Arab Emirates 7 2 2 3 4 12 −8 028.57
Uzbekistan 4 1 1 2 9 10 −1 025.00
Total 37 13 12 12 52 54 −2 035.14

International record

Matches

Season Competition Round Club Home Away Aggregate
2015 GCC Champions League Group A Oman Al-Suwaiq 1–0 2−2 2nd
Qatar Al-Rayyan 1–1 2–2
Quarter-finals United Arab Emirates Al-Nasr 1−1 (p) 1–1 (p)
2017 AFC Champions League Group A Uzbekistan Lokomotiv Tashkent 1–0 4−4 3rd
Iran Esteghlal 1–2 0−3
United Arab Emirates Al-Ahli 1–3 0−0
2020 AFC Champions League Group C United Arab Emirates Sharjah 0–6 1–0 2nd
Qatar Al-Duhail 2–0 1–0
Iran Persepolis 0–1 0–1
Round of 16 Saudi Arabia Al-Nassr 0–1 0–1
2022 AFC Champions League Play-off round Syria Al-Jaish 1–1 (5–4 p) 1–1 (5–4 p)
Group D Qatar Al-Duhail 3–4 2–1 2nd
Uzbekistan Pakhtakor 0–1 4–5
Iran Sepahan 3–0 1–1
2024–25 AFC Champions League Two Group B Bahrain Al-Khaldiya 2–1 3–2 1st
Iraq Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya 1–2 1–0
Turkmenistan Altyn Asyr 2–1 4–0
Round of 16 Qatar Al-Wakrah 2–2 2–2 4–4 (4–3 p)
Quarter-finals Iran Tractor 2–2 0–0 2–2 (4–2 p)
Semi-finals United Arab Emirates Sharjah 1–0 0–2 1–2

Past seasons

Season League Position
1985–86 Saudi First Division League 3rd
1986–87 5th
1987–88 7th
1988–89 4th
1989–90 ?
1990–91 3rd
1991–92 7th
1992–93 5th
1993–94 4th
1994–95 2nd
1995–96 Saudi Premier League 11th
1996–97 Saudi First Division League 1st
1997–98 Saudi Premier League 12th
1998–99 Saudi First Division League 8th
1999–00
2000–01 7th
2001–02 6th
2002–03 7th
2003–04
2004–05 5th
2005–06 10th
2006–07 6th
2007–08 7th
2008–09
2009–10 2nd
2010–11 Saudi Pro League 8th
2011–12 12th
2012–13
2013–14 5th
2014–15 9th
2015–16 4th
2016–17 7th
2017–18
2018–19 3rd
2019–20 12th
2020–21 4th
2021–22 12th
2022–23 5th
2023–24 4th

Managers

See also

References

  1. ^ "King Abdullah Sport City Stadium". Saudi Pro League Statistics. Archived from the original on 13 May 2020. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  2. ^ "التأسيس". Archived from the original on 28 June 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
  3. ^ "رسمياً.. التعاون يتأهل إلى دوري أبطال آسيا". Archived from the original on 13 November 2019. Retrieved 13 November 2019.
  4. ^ "التعاون يكتب التاريخ.. ويتوج بطلاً لكأس الملك". Archived from the original on 13 January 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  5. ^ "الإنجازات". Taawoun. Archived from the original on 6 August 2018. Retrieved 24 April 2007.
  6. ^ "التعاون". kooora. Archived from the original on 21 September 2023. Retrieved 26 December 2018.