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Al-Nassr match in AFC Champions League delayed 1 hour after Riyadh security alert

An empty football stadium and its pitch
File photograph: An empty football stadium and its pitch. Ben Wiens / Unsplash. Illustrative context, not a photograph of this reported event.
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Cristiano Ronaldo and Al-Nassr’s AFC Champions League match against Neftchi Fergana was delayed by an hour Monday in Riyadh after Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense issued a security alert. A sparse crowd at Al-Awwal Park stayed in their seats as the teams waited to kick off. Al-Nassr led 2-0 at halftime. Brazilian Angelo Gabriel scored first, and Ronaldo added another three minutes before the break.

The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted and destroyed ballistic missiles launched by Houthi rebels toward Riyadh. Saudi Arabia’s Civil Defense later confirmed the danger had passed.

Background: how the league phase works

The Champions League format introduced in 2024/25 puts 36 clubs in a single league table. Each club plays eight different opponents, with four matches at home and four away. A win earns three points and a draw earns one. Because teams face different opponents, a single result does not tell the whole story of a club's position.

The top eight advance directly to the round of 16. Teams finishing ninth to 24th enter a two-legged knockout play-off; those finishing 25th or lower are eliminated. When following a match report, distinguish the result from its effect on qualification: that depends on the wider table and the fixtures still to come.

Format reference: UEFA's explanation of the competition.

Read the original report at Apnews.

Read in depth: Sports

What this story rests on

1 source from 1 organisation: 1 news agency.

  1. 1ApnewsApnews · apnews.comNews agency

Source headline and summary supplied via NewsData.io. First collected by NewsJaws on 2026-10-13. This is an automated news brief, not original NewsJaws reporting. Dates reflect the source publication. Feed delays may apply.

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