Ronaldo leads Al Nassr to their first Saudi league title since he joined the club with two goals
Cristiano Ronaldo celebrated his first Saudi Pro League championship title with Al Nassr. The Portuguese forward scored two goals in a 4:1 victory against Damac, played on May 21, 2026, at Al Awwal Park stadium in Riyadh, with which Jorge Jesus's team confirmed first place in the final round of the 2025/26 season. According to the official Saudi Pro League table, Al Nassr finished the championship with 86 points, two more than Al Hilal, who ended the season unbeaten but with nine draws. Such an outcome gave additional weight to the final round because Al Nassr needed a win in order to secure the title without depending on other results. Ronaldo, according to available reports and official match statistics, confirmed the victory with two second-half goals and finished the league season with 28 goals.
The title is important for both the club and the player. Al Nassr won the Saudi championship for the first time since 2019, and Ronaldo lifted the domestic league champion's trophy for the first time since arriving in Saudi Arabia. Although he had previously won the Arab Club Champions Cup with Al Nassr, the Saudi league title had different symbolism because it was the main goal of the project that began with his arrival in January 2023. According to reports from sports media, the end of the season was especially tense after the draw between Al Nassr and Al Hilal in their previous head-to-head meeting, which left the title race open until the final round. In that situation, the match against Damac was not just a closing formality, but a match in which the leading team had to confirm an entire season.
Al Nassr settled the match in the second half
Al Nassr took the lead against Damac in the 34th minute, when Sadio Mané scored after an assist from João Félix, according to official match data published on FOX Sports. The home team went into halftime with a minimal advantage, but at the start of the second half increased the intensity and quickly created the difference that directed the match. Kingsley Coman scored for 2:0 in the 52nd minute, after which Damac reduced the deficit from a penalty through Morlaye Sylla in the 58th minute. That goal briefly restored uncertainty, but Al Nassr regained control again just a few minutes later.
Ronaldo scored for the first time in the 63rd minute, increasing the lead to 3:1 and calming a finish that, in the context of the title fight, could have become extremely uncomfortable for the home team. He scored his second goal in the 81st minute, after which the 4:1 result practically decided both the match and the championship race. According to the match record, the Portuguese forward left the game in the 87th minute, when he was replaced by Abdullah Al-Hamdan. FOX Sports listed Ronaldo as one of the key players of the match with two goals scored, while Coman and Sylla were singled out as the other scorers who marked the match.
The match was played in an atmosphere of great pressure because Al Nassr had very little room for error. Al Hilal was still in the race before the final round, and the final table shows how small the difference was: Al Nassr finished with a record of 28 wins, 2 draws and 4 losses, with a goal difference of 91:28, while Al Hilal finished without a defeat, but with 25 wins and 9 draws. According to official Saudi Pro League data, Al Nassr had the best attack in the league with 91 goals scored, and Ronaldo finished as the club's top scorer. Such statistics show that the title was won on the basis of an extremely attacking season, but also that the race was decided by fine margins, above all by the number of victories and the ability to avoid a new setback in the final round.
First Saudi league title for Ronaldo
Ronaldo arrived at Al Nassr at the beginning of 2023 after leaving Manchester United, and at the time his transfer was described as one of the most important moves in the modern history of Saudi football. Since his arrival, the league has attracted a number of well-known European players, and clubs from Riyadh, Jeddah and other cities have begun receiving significantly greater international attention. Still, despite a major individual impact, Ronaldo's time at Al Nassr was long accompanied by the absence of the main domestic trophy. Al Nassr had remained behind its biggest rivals in previous seasons, especially behind Al Hilal, which in recent years had continuity of results and squad depth in Saudi football.
For that reason, the victory against Damac had a broader meaning than an ordinary championship win at the end of the season. It confirmed that Al Nassr had managed to turn individual quality into league stability and a title, which had not always been the case since Ronaldo's arrival. According to an Associated Press report published on Yahoo Sports, Ronaldo scored the 972nd and 973rd goals of his professional career, continuing his pursuit of the symbolic mark of 1000 goals. Those figures, as well as the official tally of 28 goals in the Saudi Pro League season, further explain why the Portuguese forward remained the central figure of Al Nassr's attacking system.
During his career, Ronaldo has won league titles in England, Spain and Italy, and the Saudi title added another national championship to his trophy collection. Although comparisons between leagues differ by level of competition, infrastructure and historical weight, for Al Nassr and Saudi football this title has great media value. According to available reports, Ronaldo was visibly emotional after the final phase of the match, which many media outlets interpreted as a reaction to the long wait for a trophy with the club that brought him in as the face of a new era. Such scenes were expected in the context of a season in which Al Nassr had to withstand Al Hilal's pressure until the very end.
The title decided in a race with Al Hilal
The final Saudi Pro League table shows that the title race was one of the most interesting in recent seasons. Al Nassr won 86 points, Al Hilal 84, and Al Ahli finished third with 81 points. Al Hilal ended the season without a defeat, but draws cost them first place, while Al Nassr lost four matches but won 28 of 34 rounds. According to the official league table, Al Nassr's goal difference was plus 63, and Al Hilal's plus 58, which further shows how much both teams dominated the rest of the competition.
That balance of power further increased the importance of the final round. Before the match against Damac, Al Nassr knew that only a victory would safely remove all calculations and preserve the lead at the top. Sports reports state that the previous draw with Al Hilal increased the drama of the finish because Al Nassr had missed the opportunity to close out the championship earlier. In the final round, that mistake was not repeated. Jorge Jesus's team played maturely, took an early lead, withstood Damac's brief comeback and then, through Ronaldo, turned the match into a convincing victory.
Al Hilal's unbeaten record will remain one of the more interesting details of the season because it shows that a championship is not always decided solely by avoiding defeats. In a system in which three points for a win carry decisive weight, Al Nassr's ability to win more often was crucial. On the other hand, Al Ahli, with 81 points, also had a season that in many other circumstances would have been enough to fight until the very end, but found itself behind two clubs that set an exceptionally high points rhythm. Such competition gives Al Nassr's title additional value because it was not won in a weak race, but in a season in which the top of the league was extremely strong.
Jorge Jesus found balance in a team full of stars
Al Nassr finished the season with an attack in which Ronaldo, Mané, Coman and João Félix played important roles, and official Saudi Pro League data lists Ronaldo as the leading club scorer with 28 goals. João Félix, according to the same data, was among the most important creators and the team's second scorer, while in the final match he assisted for the opening goal. Coman scored a very important goal against Damac at the start of the second half, and Mané opened the match at a moment when pressure could have restrained the home team. Such a distribution of output shows that Al Nassr did not depend on only one player, although Ronaldo remained the most visible face of the team.
Coach Jorge Jesus, who has extensive experience in Saudi and international football, had to balance a large number of attacking options during the season with the need for the team to remain sufficiently stable in defense. The final goal difference of 91:28 shows that Al Nassr was at the same time extremely efficient and solid enough to withstand a long race. At the end of the season, such balance was especially important because matches under pressure often punish teams that depend too much on the inspiration of individuals. Against Damac, Al Nassr had exactly what it needed: an early goal, a reaction after conceding, and the experience of players who knew how to close out the match.
For the Saudi league, this outcome represents a continuation of a period in which the competition is trying to build international recognition. The arrivals of big names increased audience interest outside Saudi Arabia, but at the same time raised expectations within clubs. Al Nassr had lived under those expectations since Ronaldo's signing, and every failure in the fight for trophies further opened questions about the effectiveness of an expensive and ambitious project. This title does not solve all sporting questions, but it gives the club the most important domestic argument: the championship was won on the pitch, in a direct race with the strongest rivals.
Damac remained part of the story of the season finale
In the final round, Damac had the role of an opponent who could complicate the outcome, but in the end, with the defeat, they remained without a real influence on the title fight. According to match data, the visitors played in a system with five players in the back line, and after falling behind 2:0, they managed to return through Morlaye Sylla's penalty goal. That moment was the only part of the match in which it could be sensed that the finish might become dramatic. However, Al Nassr responded quickly and did not allow nervousness to turn into an open match.
For Damac, the match also carried weight because of their position in the table. The final league data show that the club finished the season in 16th place with 29 points, with a record of 6 wins, 11 draws and 17 defeats. In the context of the final table, the defeat in Riyadh was part of a difficult season in which the team had problems with continuity and defensive stability. Still, in the headlines this match will be remembered above all for Ronaldo's goals and Al Nassr's celebration, not for Damac's attempt to briefly restore uncertainty to the encounter.
Such an outcome further emphasizes the difference between the top and the lower part of the Saudi Pro League in the 2025/26 season. Al Nassr finished with 91 goals scored, while Damac conceded 55 goals and had a negative goal difference of 23. The difference in quality and squad depth was visible in the final round as well, especially after the home team sped up the play at the start of the second half. Still, Damac's goal showed that even in decisive matches a title is not won without moments of pressure, and Al Nassr responded to that pressure with the strongest weapon it had.
A trophy that changes the tone of Ronaldo's Saudi episode
Ronaldo arrived in Saudi Arabia as a global star whose transfer went beyond sporting frameworks. His arrival opened the door to a wave of international reinforcements, increased the league's commercial visibility and changed the way Saudi clubs present themselves outside the regional market. But on the pitch, the story had to receive confirmation in the form of a major domestic trophy. With the Saudi Pro League title, Ronaldo's episode at Al Nassr now has a result that can be measured against the ambitions that accompanied his arrival.
This title does not mean that debates about the sporting values of the Saudi project are over. The league is still developing competitiveness, infrastructure, the rhythm of competition and international reputation, and comparisons with European leagues remain complex. But for Al Nassr, what matters is that in the 2025/26 season it finished ahead of Al Hilal, Al Ahli and the other rivals after 34 rounds. According to the official table, the title was not won by a large margin, but in a tight finish, which makes it a sporting success with clear weight.
Ronaldo will take both personal and team capital from this season. Personally, he continued his scoring streak in the late stage of his career and remained among the league's most productive forwards. As part of the team, he finally celebrated the league trophy that had been missing from his Saudi period. For Al Nassr, the victory against Damac and the championship title represent the end of a years-long wait, but also the beginning of a new period in which the team will be expected to confirm that this success was not a one-off peak but the foundation for more stable dominance in Saudi football.
Sources: - Saudi Pro League – official Al Nassr page, final table, basic club information and player statistics for the 2025/26 season. (link) - FOX Sports – match record and statistics of the Al Nassr - Damac match, played on May 21, 2026, in Riyadh (link) - Yahoo Sports / Associated Press – report on Ronaldo's goals and Al Nassr's winning of the Saudi league title (link) - TalkSport – report on the end of the season, Ronaldo's goals and Al Nassr's title in the Saudi Pro League (link)