Saudi Arabia’s Al Hilal secured a 3-2 win over South American champions Flamengo on Tuesday that sent them to the Club World Cup final – the first time a Saudi team has reached the championship match in this tournament.
The win was described as a shock with Flamengo a strong favorite entering the match, stunning the South American champions.
Al Hilal, the first Saudi side to reach the Club World Cup final, will face the winners of Real Madrid’s semifinal against Al Ahly on Wednesday in Rabat.
The win was big for Saudi football – and big as well for Al Hilal players, who received a bonus from Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed bin Talal of one million riyals ($266,500).
That is in addition to each player receiving a bonus from the country’s minister of sports of SAR 500,000.
The win for Al Hilal marks a strong run for Saudi football, which started more recently with the win the national team had over Argentina in the recently-concluded World Cup, played in neighboring Qatar.
