| Season: | 2015–2016 |
| Winners: | Al-Ahli (3rd title) |
| League Topscorer: | Omar Al Somah (27 goals) |
| Biggest Home Win: | (21 November 2015) |
| Biggest Away Win: | (24 April 2016) (8 May 2016) |
| Highest Scoring: | (4 February 2016) |
| Matches: | 182 |
| Total Goals: | 508 |
| Longest Wins: | Al-Ahli (8 games)[1] |
| Longest Unbeaten: | Al-Ahli (17 games)[2] |
| Longest Winless: | Hajer (15 games)[3] |
| Longest Losses: | Hajer (9 games)[4] |
| Highest Attendance: | 60,051[5] Al-Ahli 3–2 Al-Fateh (13 May 2016) |
| Lowest Attendance: | 46 Najran 2–0 Hajer (20 November 2015) |
| Average Attendance: | 6,906[6] |
| Nextseason: | 2016–17 |
The 2015–16 Saudi Professional League (known as the Abdul Latif Jameel Professional League for sponsorship reasons) was the 40th season of the Saudi Professional League, the top Saudi professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1976. The season began on 19 August 2015 and ended on 14 May 2016.[7] Al-Nassr were the two time defending champions having won their eighth title last season.[8] The league was contested by the 12 teams from the 2014–15 season as well as Al-Qadisiyah and Al-Wehda, who joined as the promoted clubs from the 2014–15 First Division. They replace Al-Orobah and Al-Shoulla who were relegated to the 2015–16 First Division.
On 24 April, Al-Ahli secured their third league title and first since 1984 with two games to spare after defeating second-placed Al-Hilal 3–1 at home.[9]
Hajer were the first team to be relegated following a 1–0 home defeat to Al-Ahli Al-Orobah on 17 April.[10] Najran became the second and final team to be relegated following a 3–3 draw with Al-Raed on the final matchday.[11]
Fourteen teams competed in the league – the twelve teams from the previous season and the two teams promoted from the First Division. The promoted teams were Al-Qadisiyah (returning to the top flight after three years) and Al-Wehda (returning to the top flight after two years). They replaced Al-Orobah (ending their two-year top-flight spell) and Al-Shoulla (ending their three-year top-flight spell).
Note: Table lists in alphabetical order.
| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Ahli | Jeddah | [12] | |
| Al-Faisaly | Harmah | Prince Salman Sport City Stadium | [13] |
| Al-Fateh | Al-Hasa | Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium | [14] |
| Al-Hilal | Riyadh | King Fahd International Stadium Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium | [15] [16] |
| Al-Ittihad | Jeddah | King Abdullah Sports City | |
| Al-Khaleej | Saihat | Prince Mohamed bin Fahd Stadium (Dammam) | [17] |
| Al-Nassr | Riyadh | King Fahd International Stadium Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium | |
| Al-Qadisiyah | Khobar | Prince Saud bin Jalawi Stadium | [18] |
| Al-Raed | Buraidah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium | [19] |
| Al-Shabab | Riyadh | King Fahd International Stadium Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium | |
| Al-Taawoun | Buraidah | King Abdullah Sport City Stadium | |
| Al-Wehda | Mecca | King Abdul Aziz Stadium | [20] |
| Hajer | Al-Hasa | Prince Abdullah bin Jalawi Stadium | |
| Najran | Najran | King Abdullah Sports City Reserve Stadium (Jeddah) | |
| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Shabab |  Adel Abdel Rahman | End of contract | 15 May 2015 | Pre-season | Álvaro Gutiérrez | 21 May 2015[21] |
| Al-Raed |  Ammar Souayah | 19 May 2015 | Abdelkader Amrani | 8 June 2015[22] | ||
| Najran | Fouad Bouali | 19 May 2015 | Fathi Al-Jabal | 27 June 2015[23] | ||
| Al-Faisaly | Toni Conceição | Sacked | 22 May 2015[24] | Liviu Ciobotariu | 6 June 2015[25] | |
| Al-Ittihad | Victor Pițurcă | 11 June 2015[26] | László Bölöni | 22 July 2015[27] | ||
| Al-Raed | Abdelkader Amrani | 29 August 2015[28] | 13th | Takis Lemonis | 3 September 2015[29] | |
| Al-Nassr | Jorge da Silva | 24 October 2015[30] | 7th |  René Higuita (caretaker) | 24 October 2015 | |
| René Higuita (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 28 October 2015 | 6th |  Fabio Cannavaro | 28 October 2015[31] | |
| Al-Qadisiyah | Jameel Qassem | Sacked | 30 October 2015[32] | 9th |  Alexandre Gallo | 30 October 2015[33] |
| Al-Wehda | Juan Jacinto Rodríguez | 30 October 2015[34] | 13th | Badreldin Hamed (caretaker) | 30 October 2015 | |
| Hajer |  Nebojša Jovović | 30 October 2015[35] | 11th | Abdullah Al-Janoubi (caretaker) | 30 October 2015 | |
| Abdullah Al-Janoubi (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 5 November 2015 | 12th |  Stéphane Demol | 5 November 2015[36] | |
| Al-Wehda | Badreldin Hamed (caretaker) | 6 November 2015 | 10th | Kheïreddine Madoui | 6 November 2015[37] | |
| Al-Ittihad | László Bölöni | Sacked | 24 November 2015[38] | 3rd | Adel Abdel Rahman (caretaker) | 24 November 2015 |
| Adel Abdel Rahman (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 9 December 2015 | 3rd | Victor Pițurcă | 9 December 2015[39] | |
| Najran | Fathi Al-Jabal | Sacked | 17 December 2015[40] | 13th | Al Hasan Al-Yami (caretaker) | 17 December 2015 |
| Al Hasan Al-Yami (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 25 December 2015 | 13th | Hélio dos Anjos | 25 December 2015[41] | |
| Al-Shabab | Álvaro Gutiérrez | Sacked | 3 January 2016[42] | 6th | Fathi Al-Jabal | 3 January 2016 |
| Al-Qadisiyah | Alexandre Gallo | Mutual consent | 29 January 2016[43] | 11th | Hamad Al-Dossari | 30 January 2016[44] |
| Al-Raed | Takis Lemonis | Sacked | 1 February 2016[45] | 12th |  Reda Hakam (caretaker) | 1 February 2016 |
| Reda Hakam (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 4 February 2016 | 12th |  Aleksandar Ilić | 4 February 2016[46] | |
| Al-Nassr | Fabio Cannavaro | Sacked | 12 February 2016[47] | 6th | René Higuita (caretaker) | 12 February 2016 |
| René Higuita (caretaker) | End of caretaker period | 19 February 2016 | 7th |  Raúl Caneda | 19 February 2016[48] | |
| Hajer | Stéphane Demol | Sacked | 8 March 2016[49] | 14th | Abdullah Al-Janoubi | 8 March 2016 |
The number of foreign players is limited to 4 per team, and should not be a goalkeeper.[50]
Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the mid-season transfer window.
The following table lists the positions of teams after each week of matches. In order to preserve the chronological evolution, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. If a club from the Saudi Professional League wins the King Cup, they will qualify for the AFC Champions League, unless they have already qualified for it through their league position. In this case, an additional AFC Champions League group stage berth will be given to the 3rd placed team, and the AFC Champions League play-off round spot will be given to 4th.
Al-Raed who finished 12th faced Al-Batin who finished 3rd in the 2015–16 Saudi First Division for a two-legged play-off. The winner on aggregate score will take part in the 2016–17 Saudi Professional League. Al-Raed won 5–3 on aggregate and secured their place in the next season.[51]
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals[52] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Omar Al Somah | Al-Ahli | 27 |
| 2 |  Gelmin Rivas | Al-Ittihad | 19 |
| 3 | Carlos Eduardo | Al-Hilal | 14 |
| 4 | Abdulmajeed Al-Ruwaili | Al-Taawoun | 13 |
| 5 | Élton Arábia | Al-Fateh | 12 |
| 6 | Ali Awaji | Al-Wehda | 11 |
| 7 |  Paul Alo'o | Al-Taawoun | 10 |
 Adrian Mierzejewski | Al-Nassr | ||
| 9 | Javi Balboa | Al-Faisaly | 8 |
| Hamad Al-Juhaim | Al-Fateh |
| Player | For | Against | Result | Date | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al-Ittihad | Al-Qadsiah | 3–1 (A) | [53] | ||
| Al-Ahli | Al-Nassr | 4–2 (H) | [54] | ||
| Al-Ittihad | Hajer | 5–0 (H) | [55] | ||
| Al-Ahli | Al-Raed | 3–1 (H) | [56] | ||
| Yasser Al-Qahtani4 | Al-Hilal | Hajer | 4–1 (H) | [57] | |
| Al-Ahli | Al-Raed | 5–2 (A) | [58] | ||
| Rank | Player | Club | Clean sheets[59] |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Khalid Sharahili | Al-Hilal | 10 |
| Yasser Al-Mosailem | Al-Ahli | ||
| 3 | Mohammed Al-Owais | Al-Shabab | 8 |
| 4 | Faisel Masrahi | Al-Shabab | 7 |
| 5 | Abdullah Al-Owaishir | Al-Fateh | 6 |
| 6 | Assaf Al-Qarni | Al-Ittihad | 5 |
| Fayz Al-Sabiay | Al-Taawoun | ||
| Mansoor Al-Najai | Al-Faisaly | ||
| Moslem Al Freej | Al-Khaleej | ||
| 10 | Fahad Al-Shammari | Al-Raed | 4 |
| Mutab Sharahili | Al-Nassr |
Aminou Bouba (Al-Khaleej)
Mamadou Wagué (Najran)| Round | Total | Avg. Per Game | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope='row' | Round 1 | 32,122 | 7 | 4,589 |
| scope='row' | Round 2 | 29,840 | 7 | 4,263 |
| scope='row' | Round 3 | 93,882 | 7 | 13,412 |
| scope='row' | Round 4 | 53,701 | 7 | 7,672 |
| scope='row' | Round 5 | 69,084 | 7 | 9,869 |
| scope='row' | Round 6 | 39,156 | 7 | 5,594 |
| scope='row' | Round 7 | 48,285 | 7 | 6,898 |
| scope='row' | Round 8 | 57,644 | 7 | 8,235 |
| scope='row' | Round 9 | 44,462 | 7 | 6,352 |
| scope='row' | Round 10 | 72,727 | 7 | 10,390 |
| scope='row' | Round 11 | 47,422 | 7 | 6,775 |
| scope='row' | Round 12 | 43,783 | 7 | 6,255 |
| scope='row' | Round 13 | 30,295 | 7 | 4,328 |
| scope='row' | Round 14 | 63,279 | 7 | 9,040 |
| scope='row' | Round 15 | 52,709 | 7 | 7,530 |
| scope='row' | Round 16 | 28,518 | 7 | 4,074 |
| scope='row' | Round 17 | 55,137 | 7 | 7,877 |
| scope='row' | Round 18 | 38,551 | 7 | 5,507 |
| scope='row' | Round 19 | 53,191 | 7 | 7,599 |
| scope='row' | Round 20 | 56,595 | 7 | 8,085 |
| scope='row' | Round 21 | 45,342 | 7 | 6,477 |
| scope='row' | Round 22 | 18,184 | 7 | 2,598 |
| scope='row' | Round 23 | 34,391 | 7 | 4,913 |
| scope='row' | Round 24 | 67,870 | 7 | 9,696 |
| scope='row' | Round 25 | 14,018 | 7 | 2,003 |
| scope='row' | Round 26 | 66,622 | 7 | 9,517 |
| Total | 182 | 6,906 |
Source:[61]
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