Majed Abdullah

Majed Abdullah
Majed Abdullah
Born	January 11, 1959 (age 67); Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Occupation	Professional footballer (retired)
Years active	1977–1998
Known for	Saudi Arabia's all-time top scorer; Al-Nassr all-time leading scorer; Saudi Pro League top scorer

Adapted from the English Wikipedia article Majed Abdullah, available under CC BY-SA 4.0Updated 1 December 2025

Majed Ahmed Abdullah (; born 11 January 1959) is a retired Saudi Arabian professional football player who operated primarily as a striker for both Al-Nassr and the Saudi Arabian national team. He holds the record as Saudi Arabia's highest goal scorer, netting 72 goals in 117 international appearances. At club level, he is Al-Nassr's all-time leading scorer and also tops the scoring charts in the history of the Saudi Pro League. He earned the nickname "The Arabian Pelé" during his career.

Widely acknowledged as one of Western Asia’s premier forwards, Majed Abdullah was ranked third in the IFFHS Asia Player of the Century awards. His entire professional tenure was devoted to Al-Nassr, where he amassed 189 league goals across twenty-one seasons. Under his influence, Al-Nassr secured five league championships, four King Cup trophies, and claimed the 1997–98 Asian Cup Winners' Cup. Abdullah also topped the Saudi League scoring charts on six occasions. He concluded his playing career in 1998 following Al-Nassr’s triumph over Suwon Samsung Bluewings in the Asian Cup Winners' Cup final.

On the international stage, Abdullah played a pivotal role in Saudi Arabia’s inaugural qualification for a global tournament at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, scoring the nation’s only goal despite group stage elimination. He was instrumental in Saudi Arabia’s victorious campaign at the 1984 Asian Cup in Singapore, netting a goal in the final that secured their maiden title. Furthermore, during the 1988 Asian Cup held in Qatar, he scored twice as Saudi Arabia successfully defended their championship by defeating South Korea in a penalty shootout.

Early life

Majed was born in Jeddah’s Al-Baghdadia District as the second son of Ahmed Abdullah. His proximity to a local sports club and his father’s role as a football coach fostered his early passion for football. In the mid-1960s, his family relocated to Riyadh, where his father took charge of Al-Nassr’s youth squad. Majed attended Al-Jazaeria Elementary School and played for both his school and neighborhood teams, initially positioned as goalkeeper before transitioning to striker—a change that led to multiple victories. After moving to Riyadh’s Hotat Khaled District, he enrolled at Al-Motawasta Al-Thania high school and founded a neighborhood team named "Al-Ittifaq," which went on to win a local tournament by defeating one of Riyadh’s leading teams.

Club career

Majed’s talent was brought to attention by Mohammed Al-Hudayan, a teammate at Al-Ittifaq, along with coach Nasseb Awad, who recommended him to Al-Nassr’s president, Prince Abdulrahman Bin Saud, and head coach Ljubiša Broćić. Broćić personally evaluated Majed before signing him on 10 November 1975.

Following two years developing within Al-Nassr’s youth ranks, Majed made his senior team debut in January 1977. His first competitive match came on 20 January 1977 against Al-Shabab, and he scored his inaugural goal on 18 March 1977 with a header against Al-Wehda. When the starting striker was sidelined due to injury, Majed capitalized by scoring several goals towards season end, concluding with nine goals from ten appearances.

During the 1977–78 season, after an initial slow phase, he delivered important goals including braces against Al-Nahda and decisive strikes that led to victories over rivals such as Al-Qadsiah and Al-Ittihad. Despite sustaining an injury in December, he bounced back to score consistently, registering two hat-tricks versus Ohod and Al-Ittihad. He finished that campaign with 14 goals across 19 matches.

Majed Abdullah claimed the Saudi League top scorer title six times and helped Al-Nassr win four league championships alongside four King Cup titles. He remains the highest goal scorer ever in both the Saudi League with 189 goals and for Al-Nassr with a total of 260 goals. On 12 April 1998, he retired from professional football after guiding Al-Nassr to victory in front of 70,000 spectators at Riyadh during the Asian Cup Winners' Cup final.

Early years

Majed made his first appearance for the senior national team in 1978 during a non-official friendly match against Benfica, where he scored twice. His official international debut was on 10 December 1978 in a match against China. He took part in the 1979 Arabian Gulf Cup, delivering an impressive performance by scoring seven goals across six games, including five goals in a dominant 7–0 victory over Qatar. Furthermore, Majed competed in the 1982, 1984, and 1986 editions of the tournament.

International success

During the 1984 AFC Asian Cup, Majed netted a late equalizing goal against South Korea and scored once more in the final against China, helping Saudi Arabia claim their inaugural Asian Cup championship. He also participated in the 1988 event, where he scored in the semi-final match versus Iran and successfully converted a penalty in the final shootout, aiding Saudi Arabia in defending their title. Additionally, Majed represented his country at the 1984 Summer Olympics, scoring against the Brazil squad.

Later years

Majed played a key role in Saudi Arabia securing silver medals at both the 1986 Asian Games and the 1992 Arab Cup. His last appearances for the national team came during the 1994 FIFA World Cup, following which he retired from international competition.

Club

Source:

... [table continues with same structure] ...

Club	Season	League			National Cup		League Cup		Continental		Other		Total
Club	Season	Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Al-Nassr	1976–77	SPL	6	4	4	5	—		—		—		10	9
	1977–78		18	11	2	2	—		—		—		20	13
	1978–79		17	18	3	6	—		—		—		20	24
	1979–80		17	17	0	0	—		—		—		17	17
	1980–81		15	21	4	4	—		—		—		19	25
	1981–82		9	9	1	1	—		—		—		10	10
	1982–83		15	14	3	3	—		—		4*	3	22	20
	1983–84		0	0	0	0	—		—		—		0	0
	Career total			194	189	33	39	9	8	13	3	17	20	266	259*

Including unofficial matches, Majed amassed a total of 320 goals for Al-Nassr, with 61 scored in friendly encounters.

International

Data valid as of the match on 29 June 1994

Year	Appearances	Goals
Saudi Arabia
1978	3	0
1979	6	7
1980	7	9
1981	11	4
1982	10	3
1983	0	0
1984	16	15
1985	7	3
1986	10	8
1987	0	0
1988	23	11
1989	7	2
1990	3	2
1991	0	0
1992	2	1
1993	9	6
1994	3	1
Total	117	72

International goals

Goal Number	Cap Number	Date	Location	Opponent Team	Score at Time of Goal	Final Result	Tournament or Match Type
1	4	24 March 1979	Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad, Iraq	Template:Fb	2–1	Template:Won	5th Arabian Gulf Cup
2	5	28 March 1979	Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad, Iraq	Template:Fb	4–0	Template:Won	5th Arabian Gulf Cup
Multiple goals scored on 4 April 1979 at Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad, Iraq against Template:Fb (7–0 victory)
3	7	4 April 1979	Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad, Iraq	Template:Fb	1–0
4					2–0
5					4–0
6					5–0
7					6–0
8	10	30 January 1980	Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia	Template:Fb	1–0	Template:Lost	Friendly match
9	12	29 September 1980	İzmir Atatürk Stadium, İzmir, Turkey	Template:Fb	1–0	Template:Won	1980 Islamic Games
Multiple goals netted on 12 December 1980 at Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh versus Template:Fb (8–0 win)
Several goals scored on 14 December 1980 at Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium, Jeddah against Template:Fb (3–0 victory)
Goals accumulated between October 1981 and October 1984 in critical regional fixtures and qualification matches, including Asian Cup qualifiers and friendlies.
Important goals during the final rounds of the 1984 AFC Asian Cup and other international tournaments.
Goals recorded in competitions such as the Pan Arab Games (1985), Arabian Gulf Cup, Asian Games (1986), and various FIFA World Cup qualifying matches.
The last documented international goals from March 1988 through June 1994, covering friendlies and World Cup qualifiers.

Initial achievements

First training session with Al-Nassr: London, year 1976.
Initial training camp with Saudi Arabia U-17 National Team: London, year 1977.
First head coach at Al-Nassr: Ljubiša Broćić.
First coach for Saudi U-17 National Team: Jeff Faundon.
Initial jersey number at Al-Nassr: number 14.
First jersey number for Saudi National Team: number 17.
Debut match with Al-Nassr: Friendly against Al-Fath (Morocco), dated 15 January 1977.
First official appearance with Al-Nassr: versus Al-Shabab, on 22 January 1977.
First goal for Al-Nassr: scored against Al-Wehda on 18 March 1977.
First international goal at U-17 level: against Iran, dated 15 August 1977.
Debut goal for Saudi Senior Team: Friendly match versus Benfica in January of 1978.
First official goal for Saudi Senior Team: scored against Kenya in January of the same year.
First official worldwide goal for Saudi Senior Team: against Brazil during the Los Angeles Olympic Games in 1984.
Initial "League Top Scorer" award received in the season of 1978–79.

Final Appearances and Achievements

Most recent domestic fixture: against Al-Hilal during the 1996–97 campaign.
Latest domestic goal scored: versus Al-Ittifaq in January 1997.
Last domestic championship secured: Saudi Premier League in the 1994–95 season.
Most recent international match played: facing Belgium in the 1994 FIFA World Cup on June 29, 1994.
Final international goal scored: against Kuwait during the 1994 FIFA World Cup qualification rounds.
Last goal on the world stage for Saudi Arabia’s senior squad: versus Brazil at the Confederations Cup in Australia, 1988.
Final goal for Al-Nassr club: scored against Kopetdag (Turkmenistan) on April 11, 1998.
Last match representing Al-Nassr: played against Suwon Samsung Bluewings in the Asian Cup Winners Cup final on April 13, 1998.
Final season earning "League Top Scorer" honors: 1988–89.

Club Achievements

Al-Nassr

Champions of the Saudi Premier League in seasons: 1979–80, 1980–81, 1988–89, and 1994–95
Victories in the King's Cup during years: 1981, 1986, 1987, and 1990
Winners of the GCC Club Championship twice: in 1996 and 1997
Secured the Asian Cup Winners' Cup title in the 1997–98 season

International Success

Saudi Arabia

Triumphs at the AFC Asian Cup in both 1984 and 1988
Silver medalist at the Asian Games in 1986
Finished as runners-up in the Arab Nations Cup of 1992

Individual Accolades

Top scorer of the Saudi League for six seasons: 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1982–83, 1985–86, and 1988–89
Leading scorer in King's Cup tournaments: 1979, 1987, 1989, and 1990
Recipient of the Arabian Golden Boot twice: in 1981 and again in 1989
Top scorer at the Arabian Gulf Cup in 1982
Awarded Asia-Oceania Soccer Handbook Player of the Year in 1984
Leading scorer at Pan Arab Games held in 1985
Selected for AFC Asian All Stars team in 1985
Included in AFC Asian Cup Team of the Tournament for year 1988
Crown Prince Cup top scorer in 1991
Leading scorer at GCC Club Cup competitions in both 1991 and 1996
Named to MasterCard Asian/Oceanian Team of the Century in 1998
Ranked third place for IFFHS Asia's Player of the Century award in 1999
Positioned at number sixty-four on IFFHS World's Player of the Century list published in 2000
Honored with selections to IFFHS Asian Men's Team of the Century and All-Time teams as of 2021

Farewell Match

On May 20, 2008, a testimonial game commemorated a decade since Abdullah’s final professional appearance. The fixture pitted Al-Nassr against reigning La Liga champions Real Madrid, who had just secured their thirty-first league title. Hosted at King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, this event drew an audience of approximately seventy thousand spectators. Al-Nassr emerged victorious with a scoreline of four to one. Key contributors included players such as Mohamed Al-Deayea, Malek Mouath, and Nashat Akram. The scoring opened with a goal from Arjen Robben at minute fifty; however, quick replies came from Mouath and Akram. Subsequent goals by Saud Kariri and a stoppage-time strike from Mouath sealed the win.

Match Information

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External links

Majed9 website A dedicated fan site honoring Majed Abdullah
Majed Abdullah – international goals hosted by RSSSF