Brazilian star Neymar is nearing the end of his injury recovery, but in a surprising twist, he won’t be able to play for Al Hilal until 2025.
Neymar hasn’t seen the field since October 2023, when he tore his ACL during a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay. The former Barcelona star is now in the final stages of his recovery, and according to his medical team, he could be match-ready before the year ends.
However, a new obstacle has emerged: Neymar might have to wait until 2025 to make his return for Al Hilal. The reason? The Saudi Pro League club has already filled all of its available foreign player slots during the last transfer window, leaving no room for Neymar to be registered.
Despite being one of the highest-paid players in the world, Neymar has only managed to play five matches for the Saudi club. Given the current situation, it seems likely that Al Hilal will hold off on registering Neymar until 2025, allowing them time to resolve the foreign player quota issue and giving Neymar extra time to fully acclimate.
Saudi football regulations are strict, even for a marquee signing like Neymar, whose arrival was intended to elevate the profile of Saudi Arabian soccer. Under these rules, teams in the Saudi Pro League can only have eight foreign players on their roster at any given time.
Neymar Jr of Al Hilal celebrates with the trophy during the Saudi Pro League Trophy. Yasser Bakhsh/Getty Images
Al Hilal’s foreign player dilemma
Al Hilal’s roster is already maxed out with foreign players, meaning Neymar won’t be able to rejoin the squad until 2025 unless a spot opens up. Head coach Jorge Jesus is currently relying on the services of Bono (Morocco), Kalidou Koulibaly (Senegal), Renan Lodi (Brazil), Joao Cancelo (Portugal), Rúben Neves (Portugal), Sergej Milinković–Savić (Serbia), Aleksandar Mitrović (Serbia), and Malcom (Brazil), and has no plans to drop any of them.
The arrival of Joao Cancelo from Manchester City, after a stint with Barcelona, was the final move that complicated Neymar’s return. While the club’s management could theoretically offload one of the eight current foreign players to make room for Neymar, the coach seems opposed to that idea. Thus, the most feasible solution appears to be waiting until 2025 to reintegrate Neymar into the squad.