Saudi Arabia’s webook.com buys Portuguese sports-tech firm SmartMove in first European acquisition

Webook.com has acquired SmartMove, the Portuguese event technology company that runs the ticketing and membership systems behind the country’s largest football clubs, in a deal that gives the Saudi platform its first operational base in Europe and its first acquisition outside the Kingdom. The companies announced the transaction in Riyadh on 10 June.

The acquisition is significant beyond the two parties involved. It positions webook.com as one of the first entertainment and sports technology companies built in Saudi Arabia to scale internationally by buying a European platform rather than entering a market organically, a reversal of the usual direction of travel in which Gulf capital acquires assets and Western firms supply the underlying technology. Webook.com is exporting infrastructure built at home, a distinction its leadership repeatedly returned to.

SmartMove brings more than 30 years of market presence and a position deeply embedded in Portuguese sport. The company operates the technology behind the ticketing platforms and fan membership of Portugal’s biggest clubs, the Portuguese Football Federation, Liga Portugal, and national cup competitions, alongside corporate ticketing systems. It was the technology partner to the country’s “big three”, Sporting CP, FC Porto, and SL Benfica, for 18 years until 2018, and now also operates in Brazil and other international markets. Its product suite spans membership, club and league operations, venue management, and event management.

For webook.com, the rationale is reach and a foothold. Built in Saudi Arabia to power some of the region’s most in-demand events, the platform has grown to more than 17 million users across over 180 countries and has processed in excess of 40 million ticket bookings. The acquisition gives it an experienced European team, established client relationships, and a locally embedded platform from which to scale across the continent. The combination pairs SmartMove’s expertise in club membership, ticketing, access control, and matchday operations with webook.com’s strengths in event discovery, high-demand ticketing, anti-scalping AI, identity-linked ticketing, and digital commerce.

Nadeem Bakhsh, Chief Executive Officer of webook.com, positioned the deal as a statement about what Saudi companies can now build rather than simply a commercial expansion. “webook.com was built in Saudi Arabia with global ambition from day one,” he said. “This acquisition is a Saudi technology export story. It shows how companies from the Kingdom are now building platforms capable of competing internationally, acquiring global capabilities, and contributing to the future of sports and entertainment technology.”

Bakhsh tied that ambition directly to the policy environment that produced it. He said Vision 2030 had created the conditions for Saudi companies to think bigger and build for the world, and described SmartMove as a strong operational foundation in Europe with deep expertise in football membership, ticketing, and matchday access. The two businesses, he added, were ready to innovate the live event and entertainment booking experience for fans and organisers across Europe.

Portugal was chosen as the entry point for reasons that extend past the SmartMove relationship itself. Webook.com cited the country’s strong football culture, growing tourism sector, advanced digital capabilities, and active live entertainment landscape as factors in the decision, suggesting the acquisition is intended as a base for wider European operations rather than a single-market play.

António Precatado, General Manager of SmartMove, framed the deal as an opportunity to take a proven domestic model abroad with greater resources behind it. “We built our position by becoming essential to how Portuguese football and other sports operate, from membership sign-up to ticketing and matchday access,” he said. With webook.com’s platform, investment, and international network in support, he added, the company could now bring that model to clubs and venues across Europe.

The transaction reflects a broader shift in how Saudi technology firms are pursuing growth, moving from importing capability to acquiring and exporting it. Bakhsh was direct on the point, describing the deal as exactly the kind of global growth Saudi technology companies are now capable of and stressing that the company was taking Saudi-built infrastructure, operational expertise, and ambition into global markets rather than merely expanding its presence.

webook.com is expected to announce further European partnerships and projects in the coming weeks as its international footprint expands.