Hammad Albalawi is an experienced leader in the sports and tourism sectors committed to serving Saudi Arabia’s remarkable transformation as part of Vision 2030. He currently heads up the Saudi Arabia FIFA World Cup™ 2034 bid unit at the Saudi Arabian Football Federation (SAFF). He leads a team across all functions set out to achieve Saudi Arabia’s dreams of hosting the largest-ever edition of a 48-team FIFA World Cup™ held in a single nation. The bid recently revealed details of its ambition to host the iconic global football event, held under the slogan ‘Growing. Together.’
Albalawi previously held the role of Assistant Deputy Minister for Strategic Planning & Investment at the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Sport. He oversaw both the strategy and investment departments at a time of incredible development for the sports sector. He led a team that helped formulate the Kingdom’s ambitious National Sports Strategy, built on three core pillars – Mass participation, talent development and elite performance. The role also included working closely with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation and Saudi Pro League to develop the National Football Strategy, a long-term transformative approach to all areas of the Saudi game.
On the investment side, Hammad led the privatization initiative of state-owned sports assets for the very first time, which included implementing regulatory and policy changes aimed at making the sector more attractive to local and foreign investors. The project also included helping support realizing a return on investment for numerous sports federation’s intellectual property (IP), such as the Formula 1® Saudi Arabian Grand Prix, while assisting on engagement with the private sector, including the sale of naming rights and establishing new commercial opportunities.
Before venturing into the world of sport, Hammad was the General Manager of Tourism Investment at the Saudi Arabian Ministry of Tourism and part of the team responsible for the development of the National Tourism Strategy to open up Saudi Arabia to the world. He was also formerly the Director of Business Development at the General Entertainment Authority.
A former management consultant at A.T. Kearney working across numerous projects in the Middle East, he is a Finance graduate from George Washington University in the United States. Hammad’s international outlook and experience is born out of his time living in three countries, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the United States. He is a father of two young girls and resides in the Saudi capital Riyadh.
