ALKHOBAR: When Aljowharah Hassan was asked to go in goal during a 2024 university match against Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, the attacking player had never played as a keeper before.

Her usual position was on the left wing, but an injury to a teammate meant the 24-year-old had to make an unexpected switch during the match, played at Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University’s Al-Rakah campus in Dammam.

“I won’t deny how nervous I became when I heard the news. I wasn’t prepared, but I took it as a challenge with myself to prove that I deserved the position and the trust of my teammates and coach,” Hassan told Arab News.

The gamble paid off. She kept a clean sheet and her team beat Princess Nourah University 3-0.

“As soon as I heard the whistle, the crowd was chanting my name, my teammates were congratulating me, the coach was praising me and even the opposition congratulated me,” she said. “That was when I knew I was in the right place and that I belonged there.”

For Hassan, the moment was part of a football journey that began in 2019, not with plans to compete professionally, but as an escape from the pressures of everyday life.

“Sport was an outlet for me from the noise of life — another way to organize my thoughts,” she said.

Her curiosity initially led her to try basketball, tennis, padel, swimming and running. Football felt different.

Hassan began playing informal neighborhood games with relatives and neighbors in 2019. By late 2020, she was taking part in a sports program run by SABIC Sharq in Jubail Industrial City, where she trained alongside players of different ages and skill levels.

“As soon as I tried football, curiosity was no longer the only thing driving me,” she said. “It became about mastery, focus and persistence.”

As her own game developed, Hassan began coaching children and players close to her age.

“From that moment, I knew football was not just a hobby, but a life project and the beginning of my professional football journey,” she said.

Her development with SABIC Sharq continued into 2024, when she was named best player during a tournament organized by the company’s sports club in Jubail Industrial City.

The same year marked an important step in her university career, as she represented Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University in two different forms of university competition.

In the internal league, students competed within the campus through teams representing different academic specializations. Hassan’s specialization won the league title. She also represented the university in a separate Saudi competition that brought together varsity teams from cities including Riyadh, Taif and Jazan. Held in Jubail in 2024, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University finished third.

It was during her 2024 university campaign that Hassan faced Princess Nourah University and was moved into goal.

“It was a big responsibility and a difficult match,” she said. “I entered the pitch with complete confidence and focus. I isolated myself from the crowd and the noise, and my focus was only on playing.”

In 2025, Hassan began another chapter of her career when she joined Al-Muttahad, a team based in Jubail. The team later became known as Al-Dana following its acquisition by Al-Qadsiah’s women’s club.

During one tournament in Jubail Industrial City, Hassan played five consecutive matches, scoring three goals and providing six assists. She also helped the team secure first place in a competition held as part of Royal Commission sporting events.

Hassan is no longer with Al-Dana and is currently looking for another club. She says she wants to join a team with the structure and environment needed for players whose ambitions extend toward higher levels of the game.

As a left-wing attacker, Hassan describes her style as quick and direct, with an emphasis on influencing matches through both goals and assists. Her progress, however, has required overcoming resistance away from the pitch.

One of her biggest challenges has been convincing her family to accept her pursuit of football.

“At the beginning, it was a complete rejection even as a hobby, and there was fear about professionalism because of the idea in society that football was only for males, while girls should go toward less competitive activities,” she said.

She took a gradual approach, playing indoors and in football halls while continuing to train. Her friends became her strongest supporters, while the resistance from her family became another source of motivation.

“Every time I saw their discouragement, I tried to prove myself more and more until I could convince them,” she said. “So, in a way, it was also motivation for me.”

Her coaches, Hassan said, have supported her technical development while also paying attention to her physical and mental wellbeing.

“Their words are always the same: ‘We see a bright future ahead of you,’” she said. “I feel grateful for the amount of confidence they are giving me.”

Football also has to fit around an eight-hour working day. Hassan prepares her meals and training bag before work so she can head directly to training afterward, following a structured schedule while paying close attention to nutrition, hydration and maintaining her fitness.

Most of her social circle is also involved in sport, she said, making training schedules part of everyday life.

Since she started playing in 2019, Hassan has watched opportunities for Saudi female footballers expand.

“Since I started, I have noticed major development in women’s sport in Saudi Arabia, especially football,” she said. “The opportunities and spaces available to Saudi female athletes have become greater, whether through competitions, academies or teams, and professionalism and sporting ambition have become a more realistic option than before.”

Hassan has not yet competed outside Saudi Arabia, but her ambitions go beyond her next club or tournament.

“My goal is to become a role model for children and a source of inspiration, like the great players we watch and draw our passion from,” she said. “I want to prove to them that circumstances and obstacles can be moved out of the way if we insist and work toward what we want.”

For Hassan, persistence remains the defining thread of a journey that has taken her from neighborhood games to university football and competitive club play.

“Even when the roads become narrow, you will still find me trying,” she said. “Even at the height of despair, I keep trying because I know that after striving comes success and satisfaction.”

Her message to young athletes facing similar resistance is equally straightforward.

“Even if you don’t have support from your family, be everything for yourself,” she said. “Keep striving, then keep striving, and don’t give in.”