The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup, referred to as King Cup for short, is the oldest annual local football tournament in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Its first season was launched in 1957 during the reign of King Saud Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, under the name of His Majesty the King's Cup. Since then, it has been held under the patronage of the Saudi King.

The tournament has been held annually since its launch in the 1950s, with the exception of the 1975 season, which was canceled due to the death of King Faisal Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. Additionally, there was a seventeen-year pause between 1990 and 2008, due to changing the league’s name from Premier League to The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques League Cup for first league clubs. In 2007, the name of the competition was changed to The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Championship Cup, and all the Kingdom’s clubs participated in it.

Competitions in the cup are divided into two stages: The first stage involves preliminary qualifiers, featuring participation from Third Division clubs; and the second stage serves as the finale, featuring participation from pro clubs, clubs from the first and second divisions, and those who have qualified from the first stage.

The tournament utilizes a single-robin format. In the event of a tie between the two teams in their regular match duration, an extra thirty-minute period is played in two halves. If the teams remain level after this extended time, a penalty shootout is employed.

The winning team of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup is awarded the cup, gold medals, and a financial reward worth SAR10 million, in addition to the title of The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup Champion. The team that comes second is awarded silver medals and a financial reward worth SAR5 million. The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques or his representative often confers the awards.

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques' Cup championship has seen forty-eight editions, with ten different clubs emerging as champions over the years. Al-Wahda FC won the cup in the first edition of the then His Majesty the King's Cup in 1957. The following is a list of champion teams and their respective number of titles: Al-Ahli (thirteen titles), al-Hilal (ten titles), al-Ittihad ( nine titles), al-Nassr (six titles), al-Shabab (three titles), al-Wehda (two titles), al-Ettifaq (two titles), al-Taawoun (one title), al-Faisaly (one title), al-Fayha (one title).