King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival 2025 kicks off with prizes totaling 38 million

The King Abdulaziz Falconry Festival 2025, the world's largest event of its kind, kicked off today, Thursday, the Saudi Falcons Club, the festival's competitions will run from December 25th to January 10th, 2026, amidst international anticipation and wide participation from elite falconers.

Cultural heritage and global standing of the Kingdom

The organization of this festival comes as a confirmation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s leadership in the field of falconry, and its keenness to preserve this ancient heritage that has been registered in the UNESCO list of intangible cultural heritage of humanity since 2010. The festival is a cultural and sporting platform that aims to promote national identity and pass on this heritage to future generations, thus consolidating the Kingdom’s position as a leading global destination for falcons and falconers, and contributing to supporting the heritage and entertainment tourism sector.

In its previous editions, the festival has succeeded in entering the Guinness Book of World Records three times as the largest falconry festival in the world in terms of the number of birds participating, which reflects the scale of the organization and the attention that the wise leadership gives to this sector.

Details of the competitions and huge prizes

The first day witnessed a strong start with six qualifying rounds dedicated to elite local falconers, covering diverse categories such as "Gyrfalcon (both young and adult)" and "Peregrine Falcon (both young and adult)." The festival is set to feature fierce competition across 139 rounds, with the organizing committee allocating substantial prize money exceeding 38 million Saudi Riyals, distributed among 1,012 awards.

The main competitions are divided into two categories:

• The Al-Malwah competition (400 meters): It attracts categories of owners, amateurs, professionals and elites, with races allocated for locals and others for internationals.
• The beauty contest: which focuses on the aesthetics of falcons and is subject to precise judging criteria, attracting the most beautiful falcons from all over the world.

Broad international participation and strategic dimensions

This year's festival has a distinctly international character, bringing together competitors from nine countries, led by falconers from the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states, in addition to high-caliber participants from Italy, Ireland, and Syria. This diversity fosters a spirit of competition and the exchange of expertise between different cultures under the umbrella of falconry.

Attention to future generations and women

The official spokesperson for the Saudi Falcons Club, Waleed Al-Tawil, explained that the 2025 edition places exceptional emphasis on the sustainability of the sport, through:

• Allocating specific rounds for children and women to empower all segments of society.
• The creation of the “Schools Run” is a strategic step to expand the base of participants and pass the hobby on to the new generation in a systematic way.
• Holding new specialized races such as the “Nova” race for Mongolian falcons.

A complete visitor experience

The festival is open daily from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, offering a rich experience that goes beyond the sporting competitions. The site includes exhibitions of falconry equipment, pavilions for local artisans and producers, and a "Future Falconer" pavilion offering educational and interactive programs for children, making a visit to the festival a complete cultural and entertainment experience for the whole family.