By - Ibrahim Al-Jraisan

His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal, Minister of Sports and Chairman of the Saudi Arabian Olympic Committee, announced today, Monday, June 21, 2021 AD, the launch of the “Nafis” platform for licensing clubs, academies and private gyms, for the first time in the Kingdom.

This giant project, which falls under the Quality of Life Program, aims to enable the private sector to invest in the sports sector in the Kingdom, and to provide the opportunity for local and foreign investors to establish and develop private clubs, academies and gyms, by applying for the necessary licenses through this platform, in order to achieve the objectives of the vision Kingdom 2030, and diversify the sources of the economy towards building a healthy society.

This came during a virtual ceremony, in which His Highness the Minister of Sports announced the launch of this huge and unique project. He said in a press statement on this occasion: “First, I would like to extend my sincere thanks to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and His Royal Highness Prince Muhammad bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense - may God protect them - for their unlimited interest in the renaissance and growth of the sports sector, and from this support we derive inspiration and motivation towards a promising sports sector with its investment opportunities and attractive environment, and we are moving at a confident pace towards contributing to achieving the three goals Vision 2030.

His Highness added: “In the past few years, thanks to God Almighty, and then the great support and attention of our wise leadership, the sports sector has witnessed unprecedented qualitative leaps, which have clearly and clearly contributed to the growth of the sector by 170 percent in the past three years, in addition to an increase in the number of Citizens who practice sports regularly by about 19%, and the value of the sector has increased to reach 6.5 billion riyals, and today we are facing a new stage for Saudi sports by launching the “Nafis” platform, through which we seek to increase the number of clubs, academies and private gyms, in order to enhance the level of sports and the quality of competition developing the performance of athletes and supporting the growth of sports and the economy.

Prince Abdulaziz bin Turki Al-Faisal concluded his speech by saying: “This platform will, God willing, be a turning point in the sports industry in the Kingdom, as it provides the opportunity for the private sector to invest in our sport and contribute to its growth and prosperity, by obtaining the necessary licenses to establish clubs, academies and gyms for various the games".

The project, in its first phase, will include a number of sports in which licenses can be issued to establish clubs or academies according to the type of sport, including: basketball, squash, rowing, indoor rowing, gymnastics, judo, taekwondo, karate, jiu-jitsu, wrestling, martial arts Various, equestrian, cycling, football, fencing, tennis, boxing, muay thai, kickboxing, windsurfing, windsurfing, swimming, e-sports, chess, wireless sports, archery, and badminton, and these licenses will be available via (website e-mail) for all investors from inside and outside the Kingdom

The Ministry of Sports confirms its readiness to provide all capabilities and support necessary for investors, to facilitate the licensing service and help them obtain membership in the relevant federation, especially that this project witnesses great cooperation with various ministries and institutions in the Kingdom, such as the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Investment, the Ministry of Municipal and Rural Affairs and Housing, the Ministry of Interior and the Saudi Central Bank In addition to all concerned sports federations, the Nafes platform will also be supported by activating a number of initiatives of the Public Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monsha’at).