Al-Taraji Club

Al-Taraji
Full nameAl-Taraji Club
NicknameAl-Bahara (The Sailors)
Founded1980 (1980)
GroundPrince Nayef Sports City Stadium
Qatif, Saudi Arabia
Capacity12,000
OwnerMinistry of Sport
ChairmanAli Al-Eid
ManagerAnis Rebai
LeagueSaudi Second Division League
2024–25SDL, 11th of 16 Group A

Al-Taraji Club (Arabic: نادي الترجي, lit. Hope Club) is a Saudi Arabian professional football and multi-sport club based in Qatif, in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. It competes in the Saudi Second Division League, the third tier of the Saudi football league system.

History

Al-Taraj Club, under its current name, was established in 1980 as a result of the merger of Al-Shate and Al-Badr clubs, the only two clubs in Qatif at the time. The club adopted a logo consisting of the colors blue, red, and yellow, combining the symbols of the two clubs: blue and yellow for Al-Badr, and blue and red for Al-Shate.

The true beginnings date back to the mid-1950s, when the first Qatifi clubs were established, such as Al-Ta'awun, Port Said, Al-Noor, and Al-Nusour. These clubs went through a series of mergers, resulting in Al-Shate and Al-Badr. Therefore, Al-Taraj Club is an extension of the Qatifi clubs founded during that early period and may be considered the oldest club not only in the Qatif Governorate but also in the entire Eastern Province, deserving the title of "Pioneer of Eastern Province Clubs."

Throughout its long history, the club has produced players for national teams in various sports, including: the late Abdulrahman Abdullah Al-Qasab (Shamroukh), Abdul Rab Nabi Al-Zayer, Othman Marzouk, Nizar Abbas, and Hassan Al-Raheb in football; Abdulaziz Abu Saud (a current member of the club's board), Ahmed Al-Ghorab, and Mohammed Al-Zayer in basketball; Faisal Eid, Mohammed Eid, Shawqi Al-Jishi, Nizar Al-Awami, Sayyid Mohsen Al-Ramadan, Ali Baqi, Bassam Al-Khneizi, Moayed Baqi, Mohammed Al-Khater, and Hussein Baqi in volleyball; and Ihsan Al-Jishi, Zaki Al-Ghanem, Mohammed Al-Ghanem, Hussein Akhwan, and Aref Akhwan in handball. It should also be noted that the first Olympic medal won by Saudi Arabia was a bronze medal by Taraj Club's player, Ibrahim Jaafar, in the Taekwondo event at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.

Current squad

As of The Saudi Second Division League:

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  KSA Ali Hubail
2 DF  KSA Mohammed Al Taleb
4 DF  KSA Rajaie Sahool
5 DF  TUN Zied Machmoum
6 MF  KSA Mohammed Al-Muwallad
8 MF  KSA Hassan Al Zaid
9 FW  BFA Lamine Ouattara
10 MF  BFA Clavert Kiendrebeogo
11 FW  KSA Mashari Al-Juraibi
12 DF  KSA Salem Al-Hamdan
13 DF  KSA Abdulaziz Al-Marhabi
14 MF  KSA Mohammed Shajiri
No. Pos. Nation Player
15 MF  KSA Majed Al-Najrani
16 GK  KSA Ali Al-Saihati
17 MF  TUN Elyes Brini
18 GK  KSA Yazeed Al-Khaldi
20 FW  KSA Mohammed Al-Shammari
21 MF  KSA Malek Al-Darwish
22 MF  KSA Hassan Al Eid
23 DF  KSA Ahmed Al-Dossari
24 MF  KSA Azzam Al-Hamdan
26 MF  KSA Talal Al-Dossari
49 DF  KSA Abdullah Al Musaed
77 DF  KSA Ali Abo Shahin

See also

References

Notable players