that the terms of the agreement were not kept and thus voided the contract. Al-Ittihad sustained a great upset after losing the one-legged 2009 AFC Champions League Final to Pohang Steelers 1-2, as Al-Ittihad entered the knock-out phase undefeated and won the round of 16, quarter-finals, and semi-finals 2-1, 5-1 and 8-3 respectively. According to most Al-Ittihad fans, this unexpected and undeserved loss sparked major distress within the team, as Ittihad fans acknowledged the club's deterioration after this particular defeat. From this loss until 2023 and for 13 years, the club managed to achieve 5 titles only, none of them being league titles, as well as barely surviving relegation a couple of seasons. Large fanbase Match attendance-wise, Al-Ittihad has always been the number 1 club in Saudi Arabia, often with a great margin compared to the second place. In the 2014-15 Saudi League, Al-Ittihad's attendance during 12 home games reached a record 550,822 fans (average per match: 42,371), surpassing great clubs like Chelsea, A.S. Roma, and Juventus, despite not winning any trophy that season nor the previous season. In 2016, American website The Sportster ranked Al-Ittihad fans the 12th most influential football fans in the world. Al-Ittihad has built a strong fan-base across Saudi Arabia, amongst the Arab League and in Asia. The club supporters are renowned for being spirited and for their chants. Since its opening on 1 May 2014, Al-Ittihad shares the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium with local rival Al-Ahli, while their previous home the Prince Abdullah Al Faisal Stadium faced construction until it was renovated in 2022. Sponsorship Official sponsor In a press conference on 9 January 2006, president of the club Mansour Albalawi announced that Sela Sport Co (which is the sponsor of Saudi National Team) will pay 350 million riyals to sponsor Al-Ittihad for 5 seasons. Al-Ittihad was later on sponsored by the Saudi Telecom Company, however the team has not renewed STC's contract. Club statistics Honours Al-Ittihad is one of the most of successful clubs in Saudi Arabia, it has 35 official honours, 28 of which are domestic. In addition to their continental successes, the club is one of the only three Asian clubs to have won the AFC Champions League twice in a row. Records & statistics Other records {|class="wikitable" style="text-align: center;" |- ! style="color:#000000; background:Yellow;"| Season ! style="color:#000000; background:Yellow;"| Div. ! style="color:#000000; background:Yellow;"| Pos. ! style="color:#000000; background:Yellow;"| Pl. ! style="color:#000000; background:Yellow;"|