SAFF+, The Game Changing Platform of Local Football in Saudi Arabia

The Streaming Lab Streamers Series

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Welcome to my Streamers Series, dedicated articles analyzing streaming services in the Middle East, North Africa, and India. Expect in-depth reviews, trend analysis, and expert insights, delivered straight to your inbox.

This week, I have a look at SAFF+, the new streaming service from the Saudi Arabian Football Federation ↓

Live from CANNESSERIES & miptv 😎

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Today’s program

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation recently launched its own streaming service SAFF+. Let me review it for you.

1. Understanding the Saudi Arabian Football Federation

2. Exploring SAFF+ Content and Technological Strategies

3. First Impressions from The Streaming Lab

And… Action!

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In Middle East, Sports extends beyond global giants like the Premier League, F1, or the NBA. The region also has a strong interest in local sporting events. Recognizing this, the Saudi Arabian Football Federation has introduced SAFF+ as a new streaming service. However, the key challenge for local sports services lies in implementing an effective strategy to monetize such high-value content.

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Understanding the Saudi Arabian Football Federation

Before looking at SAFF+, let's first get a clear picture of what SAFF is all about:

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation is the football governing body of Saudi Arabia. Created in 1956, the federation became a member of FIFA the same year, and joined the Asian Football Confederation in 1974. The Federation is in charge of organizing domestic football competitions, and also manages the international participation of Saudi national teams.

The SAFF is now considered as one of the most prestigious football federations in Asia: the Saudi national team won 3 AFC Asian Cup victories (1984, 1988 and 1996), has made it to the finals of the Asian Cup a record six times, and has participated in the FIFA World Cup seven times, starting with their first appearance in 1994.

2027 will be key for Saudi Arabia as the country will host the AFC Asian Cup for the first time. One more thing: they will also host the 2034 FIFA World Cup ;)

SAFF logo

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation manages several football tournaments within the country, from professional leagues to cup tournaments and youth leagues:

• Roshn Saudi League: The top tier of Saudi football, featuring the country's most elite clubs.

• Saudi First Division: The second tier of Saudi football, serving as a promotion/relegation league with the SPL.

• King's Cup: A prestigious knockout tournament open to clubs from the top two tiers.

• And others: Diriyah Saudi Super Cup, Saudi Reserve League, Women’s Premier League, Women’s 1st Div. League, SAFF Women's Cup, Second Division League, Saudi League 3rd Division, Saudi U-19 Premier League, Saudi U-17 Premier League, Saudi U-19 League Div.1, Saudi U-17 League Div.1, Saudi U-15 Premier League, Saudi U-13 Premier League, Saudi Futsal League, SAFF Futsal Cup, Saudi Futsal League 1st Division, Saudi Super Futsal Cup, Saudi League 4th Division, Saudi U-19 League Div.2, Saudi U-17 League Div.2, Saudi U-15 League Div.1, Saudi U-13 League Div.1, SAFF Women's U-17 Tournament, Kingdom eCup, Women's Futsal Tournament, League U13 and League U11.

The SAFF also oversees the management and development of several national teams across different age groups and genders:

• Senior National Team: The flagship team of Saudi Arabian football, competing in international games including the FIFA World Cup, AFC Asian Cup, and other international tournaments and friendly matches.

• Women's National Teams: Following global trends in promoting women's sports, SAFF has started to develop women's football, including national teams at various age groups

• And others: U-23 National Team, 21 National Team, U-20 National Team, 19 National Team, 18 National Team, U-17 National Team, 16 National Team, U-15 National Team, Futsal National Team, Beach Soccer National team, Women's National Futsal Team, Women’s National Team U20, Women’s National Team U17 and e National Team.

You can find more details (in English ;) about SAFF here. Let’s now focus on the new streaming service SAFF+.

Exploring SAFF+ Content and Technological Strategies

The Saudi Arabian Football Federation launched their own streaming service in February this year, called SAFF+.

SAFF+ Homepage

You can only watch games On Demand on SAFF+, as it looks like there aren't any live channels yet. Some of the games come with Arabic commentary, but others don't have any commentary at all. SAFF+ will only broadcast matches of local competitions that do not have exclusive broadcast rights.

The objectives?

1. Offer fans the chance to follow local matches

2. Collect player data and help identify talents

These objective can explain why the service relies on an FVOD business model for now (Free Video On Demand), as users can watch the content for free, without subscription or ads.

Let’s now have a quick look at the content & platform:

The content

The service is organized into five main sections. As you can see below, the majority of the content features games from local football tournaments. It appears there's also an intention to offer behind-the-scenes material, focused on the “premium” teams.

Main sections:

• Home

• Tournaments

  

• Schedule

• National Teams

  

• WAFF U23 championships

The platform

As of today, users can access SAFF+ through its website (www.saffplus.sa) or by using its Android and iOS apps.

The platform is in both Arabic and English, confirming an ambition to reach audiences beyond Saudi Arabia and the MENA region.

Users can sign up if they want to bookmark their favorite games. I assume new features should come soon.

The production side of SAFF+ is the most interesting part:

The Federation equipped 70 football stadiums to be able to broadcast the matches, with an objective to cover all Saudi football stadiums. The cameras have high-quality technology and are multi-lens and multi-angle, to ensure coverage of the entire area of the stadium. They rely on cloud broadcast technology without human interference in production and photography, and there will be a central broadcast center in Riyadh to manage and transmit events via the platform.

Got any questions about SAFF+? Wondering who's behind the technology or which company manufactures the cameras? Just hit reply to my newsletter and let me know!

First Impressions From The Streaming Lab

I'm always happy to see new streaming platforms launching in the MENA region, especially those promoting local sports. This approach reminds me of Smashi TV's strategy in the UAE. I've even wrote an article on the topic:

Here are my first impressions about SAFF+:

Business model: I understand SAFF aims to make the service accessible to all. Yet, the lifespan of pure free services is often limited. That’s why, I anticipate they might introduce ads or attract sponsors for some football games to sustain the platform.

Features: If the goal is to leverage this platform for data collection, introducing smart features designed for football games would make sense. For instance, TOD, the streaming service by beIN Media Group, provides several feature: users can decide to watch an entire game or opt for a shorter recap, track player performances, or revisit specific moments in a match.

Devices: offering a website and Apps isn't enough in the streaming world today. Users should have the capability to stream games on Connected TVs too. This addition would not only improve viewer experience but also potentially bring in advertisers, especially if SAFF+ decides to upgrade its business model.

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In summary, SAFF+ is a great move coming from a major Football Federation. As highlighted, it serves as an excellent platform to give visibility to local sports, and gather data for professionals. It also shows a desire to connect with fans beyond the classic footprint.

However, for SAFF+ to sustain itself and cover the high production costs, it needs to find a viable business model.

Do you think we should expect to see more platforms like this from Football federations or other sporting bodies?

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That’s all for today, the analysis of SAFF+: the new streaming service from the Saudi Arabian Football Federation. If you enjoyed this breakdown, please consider sharing it with your friends and colleagues!

I hope everyone has a great week, see you online next Monday. Until then, enjoy the MINA Cup on Smashi Sports, the most talented and young footballers competing in Dubai.

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The Streaming Lab is a weekly newsletter exploring the trends that matter to streaming professionals in the MENA region. If you are not already a subscriber, sign up and receive it directly in your inbox every Monday.

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