Al Hilal came from behind to defeat Al Kholood 2-1 in Jeddah and win their 10th King’s Cup title.
Al Kholood, making their first-ever appearance in the final, took a shock lead inside four minutes when Ramiro Enrique burst into the box and fired a powerful shot past Yassine Bounou.
Nasser Al Dawsari brought Al Hilal level in the 42nd minute after Malcom’s cross caused confusion in the Al Kholood defence and Ramzi Sawlan failed to clear properly.
Theo Hernandez completed the turnaround in first-half stoppage time, firing a low left-footed drive from the edge of the box into the bottom corner after Edgaras Utkus could only partially clear Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s low cross from the right.
Match Notes
◉ The King’s Cup is Simone Inzaghi’s first trophy with Al Hilal since taking over last summer.
◉ Al Kholood may have missed out on a place in the AFC Champions League Elite, but that does not take away from the remarkable achievement of reaching the final under Des Buckingham, with the club also securing their top-flight status for a third straight season.
◉ Last summer, Al Kholood became the first fully foreign-owned club in Saudi Arabia following the takeover by American businessman Ben Harburg. The club’s rapid rise under his management should serve as an inspiration to other small clubs around the country.
Match Info
King’s Cup Final
Date: 8 May 2026
Venue: King Abdullah Sports City
City: Jeddah
Spectators: 62,345
Al Hilal (2)
Al Kholood (1)
0-1 Ramiro Enrique 4′
1-1 Nasser Al Dawsari 42′
1-2 Theo Hernandez 45+2′
Al Hilal
Yassine Bounou (GK)
Hassan Tambakti
Rúben Neves
Moteb Al-Harbi
Yusuf Akçiçek 46′
Nasser Al-Dawsari
Ali Lajami 88′
Sergej Milinkovic-Savic
Mohamed Kanno
Malcom
Theo Hernández
Abdulkarim Darisi 83‘
Karim Benzema
Marcos Leonardo 75′
Salem Al-Dawsari
Sultan Mandash 75′
Coach
Simone Inzaghi
Al Kholood
Juan Pablo Cozzani (GK)
Ramzi Solan
Hassan Al-Asmari 57′
Edgaras Utkus
Norbert Gyömbér
Shaquille Pinas
Iker Kortajarena
John Buckley
Adam Berry 87′
Kévin N’Doram
Abdulrahman Al-Dawsari 63′
Abdulaziz Al-Aliwa
Ramiro Enrique
Guga 64′
Hattan Bahebri
Mohammed Sawan 64′
Coach
Des Buckingham
Referee
Daniel Siebert (Germany)
Yellow Cards
N. Al Dawsari (Al Hilal)
M. Al Harbi (Al Hilal)
S. Pinas (Al Kholood)
J. Buckley (Al Kholood)
I. Kortajarena (Al Kholood)
