JEDDAH: A lack of public soccer fields in Jeddah has forced many young people to find substitute areas for playing their favorite sport, no matter how unsuitable or dangerous those areas may be. Young soccer players are commonly seen playing under bridges, in the middle of busy roundabouts and in crowded public parks, not paying attention to the passing vehicles or the pedestrians.
“We have nothing to do except play soccer and we play anywhere that seems suitable,” said Ahmed Ammari, a 17-year-old high school student living in Al-Ghulail district of south Jeddah.
Ammari and his friends sometimes play at the Ghulail roundabout, a location noted for heavy traffic. The young boys play in the middle of the roundabout while surrounded by passing vehicles on every side.
“I know it’s dangerous, especially when the ball shoots toward passing vehicles, but we try to keep the ball within the roundabout,” Ammari said.
Recently, police vehicles have begun patrolling the roundabout in a bid to stop youngsters from playing soccer there, especially after many complaints from drivers and pedestrians who occasionally got knocked by a ball.
Saleh Ameen, a 15-year-old Yemeni resident of Al-Qurayat district, said he and his friends always search for a place to play soccer and they always get chased away from any place they use for a few days.
He said the most favored place is under the Mina Bridge, which has heavy traffic on both sides. The bridge has an empty area beneath it, which is tempting for soccer players. “We always play under the bridge but sometimes the police chase us away,” he said, adding that they wait until the police go away to continue their match.
He said they try to be as careful as possible not to allow the ball go into traffic, but mistakes do happen. “Once some guys were playing in the area and they drove the ball really hard and it hit a passing vehicle and shattered the front glass,” he said. “Luckily the driver was safe.”
Mohammed Sindi, a 24-year-old Saudi living in Al-Nuzlah district, said that even the available private soccer fields are expensive to rent, which leaves the young people with nowhere to play. In the past, he said, Jeddah had plenty of empty spaces that were used for playing soccer.
“Now we hardly find any place to play,” he said, adding that many famous Saudi soccer players were discovered while playing in the streets.
The pedestrian underpass that cuts through Hail Street in downtown Balad is a common playing area for a group of young soccer enthusiasts. The players, who use the whole area as a soccer pitch, annoy visitors especially if the ball hits them. Many people have been seen shouting at the boys, asking them to find another place to play.
Salem Al-Garni, a municipality inspector, said that they always try to chase the youngsters away but they keep coming back.
“Actually they are somewhat useful because they get rid of illegal salesmen who use the underpass as a place to sell their goods,” he said with a smirk.
The Jeddah municipality recently announced in the media that it has reserved 50 undeveloped plots of land around the city as public parks. These pieces of land, worth an estimated SR30 million, are being developed with the help of private investors willing to sponsor the projects as their contribution to the city.
