The King’s Cup Final 2026 marked ON THE SLY’s second consecutive year working on the competition’s live ceremony experience in Saudi Arabia.

Working alongside Blink Experience for the Ministry of Sport’s King’s Cup Final, we provided music direction, composition and sound design for the half-time show staged in Jeddah, developed around the creative concept of the competition as the “Crown Jewel of Saudi Football”.

The ceremony transformed the stadium into a world of light, projection, fireworks and movement, built around themes of prestige, brilliance and national identity. At the centre of the experience was the King’s Cup trophy itself, presented as the ultimate symbol of excellence within Saudi football.

The creative structure unfolded across a series of chapters. The opening moments revealed a hidden jewel emerging from darkness before expanding into landscapes inspired by Saudi Arabia and Jeddah, drawing on ideas of transformation, growth and cultural significance. The narrative then narrowed back toward the trophy reveal before introducing the finalist clubs and building toward a large-scale stadium climax.

Our music approach balanced cinematic scale with regional identity, combining original composition, sound design and featured musical material connected to the wider cultural context of the event. The objective was to support the ceremony’s visual language while maintaining the emotional connection that already exists between the competition and its audience.

Working closely with the wider creative team, the soundtrack helped connect projection, lighting, fireworks and live stadium action into a single experience, supporting both the audience inside the venue and the broadcast presentation of the opening ceremony.

This project forms part of ON THE SLY’s wider work creating music direction, composition and sound design for ceremonies and large-scale live experiences around the world, including sporting finals, national celebrations and globally broadcast events.

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View our work on the King’s Cup Final 2025 half-time show.