Salem Al-Dawsari
Saudi Arabian footballer (born 1991)
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Salem Mohammed Shafi Al-Dawsari (Arabic: سَالِم مُحَمَّد شَافِي الدَّوْسَرِيّ; born 19 August 1991) is a Saudi Arabian professional footballer who plays as a left winger and captains both Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal and the Saudi Arabia national team.
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Al-Dawsari with Saudi Arabia at the 2018 FIFA World Cup | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Salem Mohammed Shafi Al-Dawsari[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 19 August 1991[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Jeddah, Saudi Arabia[3] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in)[4] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Position | Left winger | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Team information | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Current team | Al Hilal | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number | 29 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Al Hilal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2011– | Al Hilal | 303 | (88) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2018 | → Villarreal (loan) | 1 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| International career‡ | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021 | Saudi Arabia Olympic (O.P.) | 5 | (2) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2012– | Saudi Arabia | 111 | (27) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:24, 21 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:36, 15 June 2026 (UTC) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Early and personal life
Club career
Al-Dawsari made his debut for Al Hilal in 2010, at the age of 19. Apart from one year on loan at Villarreal as part of a deal between the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and La Liga,[5] he has spent his entire career at Al Hilal.
Al-Dawsari made one league appearance for Villarreal, coming on as a substitute against Real Madrid as the Yellow Submarine came from behind to draw 2–2.[6]
In the second leg of the 2019 AFC Champions League final on 24 November, Al-Dawsari scored the opening goal in an eventual 2–0 away win over Urawa Red Diamonds, which saw Al-Hilal win the title following a 3–0 aggregate victory; the title allowed them to qualify for the 2019 FIFA Club World Cup.[7]
On 7 February 2023, Al-Dawsari scored two penalties against Brazilian club Flamengo in the semi-finals of the 2022 FIFA Club World Cup. Al Hilal won 3–2, becoming the first Saudi Arabian club to reach the final of the Club World Cup.[8]
On 27 June 2025, Al-Dawsari scored in a 2–0 win over Mexican club Pachuca in the final group stage match of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup, becoming the top Asian goalscorer in the history of the Club World Cup with 5 goals, surpassing Tsukasa Shiotani (4).[9] In October that year, he achieved his second AFC Player of the Year award, becoming the first Saudi player to achieve this feat.[10]
International career
Al-Dawsari was called up to the Saudi Arabia national team for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, and scored his first international goal in an away match against Australia in 2014[11] In May 2018, he was named in Saudi Arabia's preliminary squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[12] On 25 June, Al-Dawsari scored a late winning goal as his side won 2–1 over Egypt in their last group stage match of the World Cup.[13]
On 22 November 2022, Al-Dawsari scored his second goal at a FIFA World Cup, his first at the 2022 edition in Qatar in a match against Argentina. He made a run around the box before finishing past Emiliano Martínez to put Saudi Arabia ahead by a score of 2–1, which ended in a remarkable and historic victory for the Saudi Arabia national team.[14] On 30 November, Al-Dawsari scored a goal against Mexico, in which he equalled the record of most goals scored by a Saudi player in World Cups, three goals by Sami Al-Jaber, as Saudi Arabia exited the World Cup with a 2–1 loss to Mexico.[15]
On 8 October 2025, he made his 100th international appearance in a 3–2 win over Indonesia during the 2026 World Cup qualification fourth round.[16]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 21 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | King's Cup | Crown Prince Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Al Hilal | 2011–12 | Saudi Pro League | 13 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 7 | 1 | — | 28 | 4 | |
| 2012–13 | 18 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 2 | — | 29 | 5 | |||
| 2013–14 | 21 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 8 | 2 | — | 36 | 7 | |||
| 2014–15 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0 | — | 33 | 4 | |||
| 2015–16 | 14 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 4 | ||
| 2016–17 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 1[a] | 0 | 29 | 5 | ||
| 2017–18 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 6 | 0 | — | 19 | 4 | ||||
| 2018–19 | 23 | 5 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 11[b] | 0 | 37 | 5 | |||
| 2019–20 | 20 | 4 | 3 | 1 | — | 12 | 3 | 3[c] | 1 | 38 | 9 | |||
| 2020–21 | 24 | 8 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | 1[a] | 0 | 28 | 8 | |||
| 2021–22 | 22 | 9 | 2 | 2 | – | 8 | 5 | 4[d] | 2 | 36 | 18 | |||
| 2022–23 | 14 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | 4 | 2 | 4[e] | 2 | 24 | 8 | |||
| 2023–24 | 27 | 14 | 3 | 0 | — | 10 | 6 | 8[f] | 4 | 48 | 24 | |||
| 2024–25 | 32 | 15 | 2 | 1 | — | 12 | 10 | 5[g] | 1 | 51 | 27 | |||
| 2025–26 | 26 | 8 | 4 | 0 | — | 5 | 2 | — | 35 | 10 | ||||
| Total | 302 | 88 | 34 | 8 | 17 | 1 | 110 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 500 | 142 | ||
| Villarreal (loan) | 2017–18 | La Liga | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 1 | 0 | ||||
| Career total | 303 | 88 | 34 | 8 | 17 | 1 | 110 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 501 | 142 | ||
- Appearance(s) in Saudi Super Cup
- Nine appearances in Arab Club Champions Cup, one appearance in Saudi Super Cup, one appearance in Saudi-Egyptian Super Cup
- Appearances in FIFA Club World Cup
- Three appearances and one goal in FIFA Club World Cup, one appearance and one goal in Saudi Super Cup
- Three appearances and two goals in FIFA Club World Cup, one appearance in Saudi Super Cup
- Six appearances and two goals in Arab Club Champions Cup, two appearances and two goals in Saudi Super Cup
- Two appearances in Saudi Super Cup, three appearances and one goal in FIFA Club World Cup
International
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Saudi Arabia | 2012 | 2 | 1 |
| 2013 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 9 | 1 | |
| 2015 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 0 | 0 | |
| 2017 | 5 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 14 | 3 | |
| 2019 | 9 | 4 | |
| 2020 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2021 | 8 | 4 | |
| 2022 | 13 | 3 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 3 | |
| 2024 | 16 | 2 | |
| 2025 | 13 | 2 | |
| 2026 | 4 | 1 | |
| Total | 111 | 27 | |
- Saudi Arabia's score listed first, score column indicates score after each Al-Dawsari goal.[17]
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | 29 February 2012 | Melbourne Rectangular Stadium, Melbourne, Australia |  Australia | 1–0 | 2–4 | 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2. | 23 November 2014 | King Fahd Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  United Arab Emirates | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2014 Arabian Gulf Cup |
| 3. | 8 June 2017 | Adelaide Oval, Adelaide, Australia | Australia | 1–1 | 2–3 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4. | 7 October 2017 | King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |  Jamaica | 1–0 | 5–2 | Friendly |
| 5. | 15 May 2018 | La Cartuja, Seville, Spain |  Greece | 1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 6. | 25 June 2018 | Volgograd Arena, Volgograd, Russia |  Egypt | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup |
| 7. | 10 September 2018 | Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  Bolivia | 2–0 | 2–2 | Friendly |
| 8. | 8 January 2019 | Maktoum Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates |  North Korea | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2019 AFC Asian Cup |
| 9. | 5 September 2019 | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium, Dammam, Saudi Arabia |  Mali | 1–1 | 1–1 | Friendly |
| 10. | 10 September 2019 | Bahrain National Stadium, Riffa, Bahrain |  Yemen | 2–2 | 2–2 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 11. | 14 November 2019 | Pakhtakor Stadium, Tashkent, Uzbekistan |  Uzbekistan | 3–2 | 3–2 | |
| 12. | 14 November 2020 | Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia | Jamaica | 1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 13. | 30 March 2021 | King Saud University Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  Palestine | 5–0 | 5–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 14. | 5 June 2021 | Yemen | 1–0 | 3–0 | ||
| 15. | 11 June 2021 |  Singapore | 1–0 | 3–0 | ||
| 16. | 2 September 2021 |  Vietnam | 1–1 | 3–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification | |
| 17. | 29 March 2022 | King Abdullah Sports City, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia | Australia | 1–0 | 1–0 | |
| 18. | 22 November 2022 | Lusail Iconic Stadium, Lusail, Qatar |  Argentina | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup |
| 19. | 30 November 2022 |  Mexico | 1–2 | 1–2 | ||
| 20. | 24 March 2023 | Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia |  Venezuela | 1–2 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 21. | 28 March 2023 | Bolivia | 1–1 | 1–2 | ||
| 22. | 17 October 2023 | Estádio Municipal de Portimão, Portimão, Portugal | Mali | 1–2 | 1–3 | |
| 23. | 21 March 2024 | King Saud University Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  Tajikistan | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 24. | 28 December 2024 | Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium, Kuwait City, Kuwait |  Iraq | 1–0 | 3–1 | 26th Arabian Gulf Cup |
| 25. | 20 March 2025 | King Saud University Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia |  China | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 26. | 5 December 2025 | Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar |  Comoros | 3–1 | 3–1 | 2025 FIFA Arab Cup |
| 27. | 5 June 2026 | Q2 Stadium, Austin, United States |  Puerto Rico | 3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
Honours
Al-Hilal
- Saudi Pro League: 2016–17, 2017–18, 2019–20,[19] 2020–21, 2021–22, 2023–24
- King's Cup: 2015, 2017, 2019–20, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2025–26
- Saudi Crown Prince Cup: 2011–12, 2012–13, 2015–16
- Saudi Super Cup: 2018, 2021, 2023,[20] 2024[21]
- AFC Champions League: 2019, 2021
Individual
- IFFHS Asian Men's Team of the Year: 2020,[22] 2022,[23] 2023,[24] 2025[25]
- IFFHS Asian Men's Team of the Decade: 2020[26]
- AFC Champions League Most Valuable Player: 2021[27]
- Saudi Pro League Player of the Month: January 2023
- Saudi Pro League Saudi Player of the Season: 2024–25[28]
- AFC Player of the Year: 2022,[29] 2025[30]
- AFC Champions League Elite top scorer: 2024–25[31]
