Al-Nassr Crowned Champions After Derby Victory

Riyadh has a new champion again. Al-Nassr are Saudi Pro League winners for 2025-26, ending a seven-year wait and doing it in the most satisfying way possible: by beating Al-Hilal in the derby.

On a tense Tuesday night, with the title within reach but not yet in their hands, Al-Nassr held their nerve. A single goal was enough. Mohamed Simakan, the former Strasbourg defender, wrote his name into club history with the strike that settled a tight, high-stakes encounter 1-0.

That finish did more than win a match. It ripped the title out of reach for the chasers.

The victory sends Al-Nassr eight points clear of Karim Benzema’s side with only two games left. The gap is now unbridgeable. The maths says it, the table confirms it: no one is catching them.

For Al-Nassr, this is league title number ten, a landmark crown for a club that has grown used to living under the harsh light of expectation. It is also their first domestic triumph since Cristiano Ronaldo arrived in 2022, a moment many inside the club will feel has been a long time coming.

Ronaldo, who has spent a career bending domestic competitions to his will, quietly adds another chapter. Premier League with Manchester United. La Liga with Real Madrid. Serie A with Juventus. Now the Saudi Pro League with Al-Nassr. Four countries, four titles, one relentless standard.

The spotlight inevitably falls on the Portuguese forward, but this campaign will also be remembered for the supporting cast that delivered when it mattered. On derby night, it was Simakan who stepped forward, a defender turning match-winner on the evening that decided a season.

Al-Nassr’s fans have waited since 2019 to call themselves champions again. The Big Yellow finally has its statement season, its tenth league crown, and a title that validates the project built around one of the game’s greatest forwards.

Ronaldo’s medal collection grows once more. The next question hangs over the summer: can he carry that winning habit back into a Portugal shirt and lift yet another trophy before the year is out?