The Covid-19 pandemic forced football clubs around the world and the region to halt all activities to promote social distancing measures and curb the spread of the virus, leaving thousands of fans looking for new ways to stay in touch with their favorite players and clubs. 

Enter TikTok, the leading short-form video platform taking the region by storm. With its easy to use features, the app provided users from the region with an opportunity to connect with their favorite local players. 

As economies start opening up and following the announcement of the resumption of football activities post-lockdown, players and fans alike continue to express their creativity on TikTok. 

Most recently, one of the most celebrated football clubs in the UAE, Al Jazira Football Club, joined the platform becoming the first club in the GCC to officially launch a TikTok account. Leveraging its key players including Abdulrahman Alameri, Milos Kosanovic, Hazza Subait, Bruno de Oliveira, Musallem Fayez, Salim Rasid, and Thulani Serero, the football club is encouraging its followers to stay active and safe from home by releasing a series of workout tips and tricks on their TikTok profile. 

As football activities resumed, Arab football stars took to TikTok to showcase their excitement by recreating some of their favorite football moments to the tune of Jason Derulo’s Colors under the #celebratefootball challenge in collaboration with the number one sports publisher in the region “kooora.com”, which received over 59 Million views to date. Mahdi Al-Humaidan from Al-Qadsiah gave his own spin on celebrations, while Mohanad Ali “Meme” from Portimonense Sporting Club participated in the campaign, along with other Arab stars, like Mehdi Neghmi, Wissam Al Idrissi, and Mohammad Markabawi "Aiker". 

TikTok also celebrated the return of football in partnership with 7tickets.com, the only sports ticketing and tourism company in MENA, by giving users the chance to win a round trip to visit their favorite international clubs and meet their football stars post COVID-19 under the hashtag #footballisback. Simultaneously, TikTok launched a football quiz (#360quiz) and invited the sports community to test their knowledge in partnership with sport360.com with key celebrities including Zamalek ex-Star Ahmed Eid, football guru Mohammed Award, Number 1 Arab female pundit and analyst Nabaa Al Dabbagh, UAE YouTube sensation Khaled and Arab Football Author and Pundit Mohammed Hesham Moharram participating.
As a key platform for creative expression and in line with its mission to inspire creativity and bring joy, TikTok continues to identify key ways to encourage users to create locally relevant content in line with their passions.