Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani (born 19 February 1970) is the

Deputy Prime Minister A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a Minister (government), government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to th ...

and Minister of State for Defence Affairs in Qatar. He is a senior government official, and former Secretary General of the

Qatar Olympic Committee Qatar Olympic Committee (, IOC code: QAT) is the National Olympic Committee representing Qatar. History The QOC was formed in 1979 and was granted full recognition by the International Olympic Committee in 1980. QOC's main goal is to bring worl ...

. He also served as Qatar’s Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany.

Biography

Born in

Doha Doha ( ) is the capital city and main financial hub of Qatar. Located on the Persian Gulf coast in the east of the country, north of Al Wakrah and south of Al Khor (city), Al Khor and Lusail, it is home to most of the country's population. It ...

, he completed an undergraduate degree in

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

New Mexico State University New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public, land-grant, research university in Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States. Founded in 1888, it is the state's oldest public institution of higher education, and was the original land-g ...

in 1993 before going on to gain a

Master's Degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional prac ...

Sports Management Sport management is the field of business dealing with sports and recreation. Sports management involves any combination of skills that correspond with planning, organizing, directing, controlling, budgeting, leading, or evaluating of any organiza ...

from the

University of Lyon The University of Lyon ( , or UdL) is a university system ( ''ComUE'') based in Lyon, France. It comprises 12 members and 9 associated institutions. The 3 main constituent universities in this center are: Claude Bernard University Lyon 1, which f ...

. He served in the

Qatar Armed Forces The Qatar Armed Forces () are the military forces of the State of Qatar. Since 2015, Qatar has implemented mandatory military conscription with an average of 2,000 graduates per year. As of 2010, Qatar's defence expenditures added up to a tot ...

before becoming involved in national level sports administration positions.Vice-President of Honour of the FIE since 2008
FIE. Retrieved on 2014-11-18. His first major organizational projects came as Director General of the committees for the

17th Arabian Gulf Cup The 17th Arabian Gulf Cup () was held in Qatar between 10 and 24 December 2004. It marked the return of the Iraqi National team back to the competition, following the fall of Saddam Hussein. Qatar turned out the victors and Oman came in runners ...

and the

2005 West Asian Games The 3rd West Asian Games were to be held from 7 to 17 April 2003 in Damascus, Syria. However, they were postponed and then cancelled. On 4 April 2002 the West Asian Games Federation decided that the Games would be held every four years, instead of ...

, as well as being a committee member for the

2006 Asian Games The 2006 Asian Games (), officially known as the XV Asiad or 15th Asian Games (, and commonly known as Doha 2006 (), were an Asian multi-sport event held in Doha, Qatar, from December 1 to 15, 2006, with 424 events in 39 sports featured in the ga ...

. He served as the Secretary General of the

, President of the Qatar Basketball Federation and Vice-President of the

International Fencing Federation The International Fencing Federation (''Fédération Internationale d'Escrime'') commonly known by the acronym FIE, is the international Sport governing body, governing body of Olympic Games, Olympic fencing. Today, its head office is at th ...

(FIE). VIP Interview HE Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani
''The Business Year'' (January 2014). Retrieved on 2014-11-18. Sheikh Saoud played a major role in the winning of bids for Qatar's first international level sports competitions including the

2014 FINA World Swimming Championships (25 m) The 12th FINA World Swimming Championships (25m) were held in Doha, Qatar on 3–7 December 2014. The Hamad Aquatic Centre in the Aspire Zone hosted the event. Host selection On 14 December 2010, FINA announced that Catania, Italy would host t ...

, the

2015 World Men's Handball Championship The 2015 World Men's Handball Championship was the 24th staging of the IHF World Men's Handball Championship, World Men's Handball Championship, organised by the International Handball Federation (IHF). The final tournament was held for the first ...

2016 UCI Road World Championships The 2016 UCI Road World Championships took place in Doha, Qatar, in October 2016. The championships was moved from the traditional September to October to avoid extreme hot and blustery weather. The event consisted of a road race, a team time t ...

2018 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships The 2018 Artistic Gymnastics World Championships was the 48th edition of the Artistic Gymnastics World Championships. The competition was held from October 25 – November 3, 2018, at the Aspire Dome, Aspire Academy Dome in Doha, Doha, Qatar. It ...

and the

2019 World Championships in Athletics The 2019 IAAF World Athletics Championships () was the seventeenth edition of the biennial, global sport of athletics, athletics competition organised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF), since renamed World Athleti ...

(being the bid leader for the latter). These projects formed part of the

Qatar National Vision 2030 Qatar National Vision 2030 (; abbreviated as QNV 2030) is a development plan launched in October 2008 by the General Secretariat for Development Planning in the State of Qatar. The aim of QNV 2030 is to "transform Qatar into an advanced society ...

, a long-term government plan to develop the nation's economic and cultural wealth. He also promotes the participation of

Qatari women Women in Qatar experience certain forms of discrimination, including being subjected to the country's male guardianship law. Qatar is the only remaining country in the Gulf region which continues to require male guardianship for women's travel. ...

in sports, noting the increased investment in

women's sports Women and girls have participated in sports, physical fitness, and exercise throughout history. However, the extent of their involvement has varied depending on factors such as country, time, geographical location, and level of economic develo ...

in the country and participation of its female athletes at the

2011 Pan Arab Games The 2011 Arab Games also known as the 12th Arab Games took place in Doha, Qatar from 6 to 23 December 2011. This was the first time that the country had hosted the multi-sport event. Khalifa International Stadium was the main venue for the comp ...

and

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. He is a sport’s enthusiast and is particularly interested in tennis, shooting sports, soccer and swimming. He Served as Secretary General of the

from 2002 – 2015. In 2017, he was appointed Ambassador of the State of Qatar to the Federal Republic of Germany and Non-resident Ambassador to the Czech Republic (2017-2019). As Ambassador of Qatar to Germany he had many significant achievements, notably the opening of the Arab Cultural House “Al Diwan” in Berlin, a cultural house aimed at strengthening German and Arab cultural relations. The Embassy of the State of Qatar restored and rehabilitated the building to preserve its historical character and transformed it into an Arab cultural house. "Al Diwan" holds significant importance as the first Qatari cultural center outside the State of Qatar. Its opening marked a new chapter in Qatari-German cultural relations. In 2020, he was appointed Chief of the Amiri Diwan on October 27, 2020 by the Amiri Order (5) of 2020. Since 12 November 2024, Al Thani has served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of State for Defence Affairs.

Controversy

Al Thani faced criticism for a November 2021 tweet in which he claimed Israel "controls" the United States and urged Qatar to increase its influence on American decision-makers. He responded to a follower with: "With correct planning and a strong will, everything is possible." Sa'oud bin Abd Al-Rahman Al Thani, Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, sparked controversy in March 2025 after deleting a tweet originally posted on August 21, 2014, which appeared to express support for Hamas (a group designated as a terrorist organization by the European Union, United States, and United Kingdom) reading "We Are all Hamas… Oh Al-Quds, revolt and commemorate Al-Qassam!"

References

External links

Lecture on Olympic values
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thani, Saoud Abdulrahman 1970 births People from Doha Qatari sports executives and administrators Deputy prime ministers of Qatar State ministers of Qatar Saoud Abdulrahman Qatari military personnel Living people