Footballco Expands Middle East Footprint with New Riyadh Production Studio to Fuel Creator-Led Content Boom

Football media and culture company, Footballco, have opened a new production studio in Riyadh, which will allow the company to significantly increase the quantity of its in-studio content created for its leading Arabic video-first football brands: Yalla GOAL, Yalla Fans and Yalla Girl, as well as branded content for commercial partners.

The new studio complements Footballco’s Riyadh office, which opened in December 2024 as its Middle East headquarters. Footballco’s move to Riyadh was driven by the company’s desire to better serve its clients in Saudi Arabia and to bring it closer to the burgeoning football industry in the Kingdom. Since then, the company’s headcount in Saudi Arabia has grown to twenty full-time staff.  

Currently, Footballco operates three video-first Arabic-language football brands in the region, all targeting Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha fans and fronted by experienced content creators.

These include Yalla GOAL, which combines spirited discussions, bold challenges, and fun games. Also, Yalla Girl, which celebrates the growing world of women’s football in Saudi Arabia and the region, showcasing not only talent but personality, laughter, and friendship. 

Footballco also plans to create in-studio formats for its fan-driven series, Yalla Fans, which was previously all shot on location around the region’s football stadiums. 

The company’s decision to invest in creator-led in-studio video formats is backed by its own research, which found that, for young fans, brand partnerships with creators are seen as more valuable than official partnerships with tournaments.

Footballco’s new studio will increase the frequency of video content created for its channels, supported by the hires of two full-time hosts for Yalla Goal: Mohammed Bargat and Waleed Alshargi (better known as Shargi), who have a combined following of over 900,000 on their personal channels.  

Andy Jackson, Footballco’s SVP for the Middle East, said:  “With seven national teams from the region set to appear at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, eight if Iraq qualify through the play-offs, these new facilities and increasing video output sets our brands up for success at a time where we know there will be an unprecedented demand for fun, creator-led video content.

“We’re also excited to welcome both Borqat and Shargi to the team, with both having more than proved themselves as understanding how to create content that resonates with young fans and they are already familiar to our audiences.”

“In December, our Arabic social channels generated over 1.7 billion video views so we are building from an incredibly strong base to further cement our position as the clear market leader both in Saudi Arabia and the wider region. Our creator-led video formats have proved incredibly popular with brands, and this investment will see us able to offer a broader range of opportunities to our many commercial partners.”

While this Summer’s World Cup will see Footballco’s new studio in constant use, the company is also readying a slate of programming across Ramadan, with 30 shows spread over the expected 27 days of Ramadan, culminating in an Eid Special.

Taha Imani, Footballco’s head of video and social in MENA said: “ With YouTube becoming the number one place for fans to enjoy longform and short form football content, and based on success across Footballco brands such as The Front Three in other markets, we’re expecting to grow at speed as we approach the World Cup giving fans exactly what they want from us on a daily basis.”