The Saudi Arabia national football team, popularly known as the Green Falcons, finished bottom of Group H on two points. Their campaign ended without a win—drawing 1–1 with Uruguay and 0–0 with Cape Verde, before suffering a heavy 4–0 defeat to Spain.
In a candid post shared on X, Al-Misehal did not shy away from responsibility for the disappointing outcome. He wrote:
“The failure of the national team to qualify for the next round of the World Cup is a result that falls short of all our ambitions, and I bear full responsibility for it. I offer my apologies to everyone who hoped to see our team in a better position,”
He went further to explain his decision to leave office before completing his term:
“A sense of responsibility requires giving the opportunity to open a new chapter, and I have decided not to continue until the end of my current term,”
Al-Misehal had led the Saudi football federation for seven years, a period marked by rapid transformation and heavy investment in the sport. One of his most significant achievements was helping secure Saudi Arabia’s successful bid to host the 2034 World Cup, a key pillar of the country’s broader economic diversification plan under Saudi Arabia.
This tournament marked Saudi Arabia’s third consecutive World Cup appearance, underscoring steady progress on the international stage, even as results in this edition fell short.
However, the build-up to the tournament was already turbulent. Poor performances in friendly matches earlier in March led to the dismissal of French coach Hervé Renard, ending his second stint in charge after he had previously replaced Italian coach Roberto Mancini.
The wider context highlights the scale of Saudi Arabia’s football ambitions. Over the past three years, the kingdom has reportedly invested close to two billion dollars into the sport, reshaping its domestic league into one of the most financially powerful in the world. That spending spree has attracted global superstars such as Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Karim Benzema to the Saudi Pro League, dramatically raising its international profile.
Despite that investment, the national team’s early exit has raised fresh questions about the gap between domestic league growth and international tournament performance—questions that will now fall to a new leadership era to address.