JEDDAH: Investing in small-scale entertainment ventures is one of the most common practices of some youths during the month of Ramadan, especially in the southern districts of Jeddah.
Youngsters are seen playing table soccer and billiards in almost every alley and side street of the city’s southern districts during the whole month. Games usually start after Taraweeh prayers, which ends around 10 p.m.
Many of the neighborhood’s youngsters create table soccer leagues, which hold tournaments. Usually an individual or a group of youngsters will help organize these leagues for a modest fee.
Hamada Masoud, a young Saudi resident of Madain Al-Fahd district in south Jeddah, said that he collected SR1,500 with his two brothers to buy a billiard table.
Many of the young boys say that such games provide good entertainment for them and create a good gathering point for friends.
Masoud operates his small business in the late evening everyday in front of his house.
“Business is good,” he said. “I’ve made more than SR2,000 profit during the first two weeks of Ramadan.” Masoud says there is a big demand from the moment he sets up the table until he carries it inside his house around 3 a.m. Usually the loser pays the game’s rent, he said, adding that sometimes he calls good players to play for free in order to attract more customers.
Table soccer is the most common game among youngsters in Ramadan, where they play in groups against each other. Usually a game costs SR10, which is to be paid by the losing team.
“I’ve been in the business for the last three seasons and I have made a good fortune out of it,” said Saad Al-Mihmadi, a young Saudi resident of Al-Nuzlah district. He said that the biggest amount of money comes from neighborhood tournaments, where money is also chipped in to buy a trophy and pay for the rental of the table-soccer units. “Tournament time usually starts from 10 p.m. up to midnight,” he said. “After that the tables are rented for individual games.”
An average daily income from a soccer table would reach up to SR200, he said, adding that he is planning to use this year's profit to buy two new soccer tables for next year's season.
