The Qatar national team is planning to regain the Arabian Gulf Cup football title, which has been absent from its coffers for 12 years, during its participation in the next edition of the competition, “Gulf 27”, hosted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is organizing the twenty-seventh edition of the Gulf Cup in Jeddah, from September 23 to October 6.
The draw for the group stage of the tournament, which was held on May 19, placed the Qatar team, which is preparing to record its 27th appearance in the competition, in the second group, along with the teams of the Emirates, Bahrain and Yemen.
The Qatari team begins its matches in “Gulf 27” by facing the Bahrain national team, on the 24th of September, before playing against the Yemeni national team three days later in the second round, while it concludes its matches in the first round of the competition by meeting the UAE national team on the 30th of the same month.
The Qatar national team dreams of obtaining its fourth title in the Gulf Cup, after having previously won the tournament for the first time, when it hosted it on its stadiums in the 11th edition in 1992. Then, the Al-Anabi national team waited 12 years to win its second title in the competition in the 17th edition, which it also organized in 2004, after its victory over the Oman national team in the final match on penalties, which it resorted to. The two teams reached it after the end of extra time in a positive draw 1/1.
The third and final title for the Qatari team came in the “Gulf Cup” in the 22nd edition, which was held in Saudi Arabia in 2014, after defeating the hosts 2-1 in the final.
Since then, the Qatar national team has been waiting for its fourth title in the tournament, the first edition of which began in 1970, as it is still eluding it despite winning two titles in the “Asian Cup of Nations” in 2019 and 2023.
During its participation in “Gulf 27”, the Qatar national team, led by Spanish coach Julen Lopetegui, who took over in May 2025, succeeding Luis Garcia, is seeking to reconcile its fans who felt very disappointed, after the team’s disappointing participation in the recent “World Cup” that was held in the United States, Mexico and Canada during the summer of this year.
The Qatari team bid farewell to the World Cup in the group stage, after finishing at the bottom of the second group with one point. Despite drawing 1-1 with the Swiss team at the beginning of its World Cup campaign, obtaining the first point in its history in the competition, it suffered a harsh loss to the Canadian team with a score of 0-6, which was followed by another painful defeat against the Bosnia and Herzegovina team with a score of 1-3.
Lopetegui believes that “Gulf 27” is a very good rehearsal for the Qatari team before its upcoming participation in the “Asia Nations Cup” finals, which will also be held in Saudi Arabia at the beginning of next year, as the team aspires to retain the continental title for the third edition in a row.
The Qatar national team is ranked 59th in the world and sixth in Asia in the latest classification issued by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) for the teams last July, noting that it is ranked second in the classification among the teams participating in the “Gulf 27”, behind the Saudi national team.
During its previous participation in the Gulf Cup, the Qatar national team, which registered its presence in all editions of the tournament, played 117 matches, achieving 43 wins and 31 draws, while suffering 43 losses, and its players scored 143 goals, while conceding 140 goals.
During its previous participation in the Gulf Cup, the Qatar national team won runner-up in the years 1984, 1990, 1996 and 2002, and won third place in the 1976 and 2003-2004 editions, and fourth place in the years 1970, 1972, 1974, 1986 and 1994, while it advanced to the semi-finals in the 2009 and 2019 editions. And 2023, without a match being held to determine the third-place finisher, in addition to his three titles in the competition, where he shares third place with the Saudi national team on the list of the most crowned teams in the tournament throughout history.
Retired star Mansour Muftah tops the list of Qatar's all-time top scorers in the Gulf Cup with 13 goals, equal in number of goals with Emirati Ali Mabkhout on the list of all-time top scorers for the competition, in general.
Regarding the largest victory for the Qatar national team in the history of its participation in the “Arabian Gulf Cup”, it was 4-0, and Al-Annabi achieved it on two occasions. The first was in the third edition in 1974 in Kuwait against the Sultanate of Oman national team, while the second time was in the 1992 edition against the Kuwaiti national team.
Moroccan Hussein Amouta, the coach of the Egyptian Al-Ahly team, denied the existence of any negotiations between him and any other club, stressing his full focus on his current mission and project with the team.
Amouta said in the press conference after the Abu Qir match in the Egyptian League on Tuesday evening that some of those affiliated with the press are being exploited by those he described as enemies of the club to stir up crises, stressing that he does not care about what is said about his future.
The Moroccan coach added: “I am focusing greatly on my presence with Al-Ahly and my project with the club, and there are no negotiations with any other club, and I am focusing on my work with Al-Ahly.”
Amouta explained that there is no easy match in the league championship as all teams seek to compete and achieve results, noting that Al-Ahly started the match strong and created many chances, but scoring the second goal was delayed.
The Moroccan coach thanked Al-Ahly fans for their support of the team, saying: “I thank the fans with all my heart for the support, and this is the real Al-Ahly fans who support the team at all times.”
He added that the technical staff realizes that there are some errors that need to be addressed, stressing that the team is working to improve with the successive matches.
Amouta attributed the impact of Al-Ahly’s level in some matches to the injuries and absences suffered by the team, noting that the technical staff had to make changes in the defensive line, and despite this, the team enjoys a state of stability.
Amouta touched on Imam Ashour’s participation mainly, explaining that the player performed well and that the decision to replace him came with the aim of preserving him and not burdening him with more than necessary.
Al-Ahly rose to the top of the Egyptian Premier League “temporarily” with a difficult victory over its guest, Abu Qir Fertilizers, with a score of 2-0 in the fifth round competitions, Tuesday.
Ahmed Mostafa “Zizou” scored the first goal for Al-Ahly in the 16th minute of the match that was held at Cairo Stadium.
Zizou raised his tally to 3 goals, becoming the team's top scorer in the competition this season.
Substitute Hussein Al-Shahat added the second goal with a powerful shot that landed in the left scissors in the 94th minute, confirming the victory of the Red Giant.
With this result, Al-Ahly temporarily takes the lead with 13 points, compensating for its stumble by drawing 1-1 with the Arab Contractors in the fourth round, last Wednesday.
Al-Ahly, which won the title, is awaiting the rest of the results of its competitors, Pyramids (12 points), and Zamalek, the defending champion (10 points).
Zamalek will be a guest at Ghazl El Mahalla on Wednesday evening, while Pyramids will play with Sharqia Enppi at the end of the round’s competitions on Thursday.
In another match at the same time, Al-Ittihad of Alexandria defeated Al-Masry of Port Said 2-0, also in a match held at the new Suez Stadium.
Al-Ittihad accomplished the mission with a brace in the second half, as they took the lead with an own goal scored by Baher El-Mohamady, Al-Masry’s defender, by mistake, in the 58th minute, and John Ebuka added the second goal in the 95th minute.
Al-Ittihad of Alexandria raised its score to 10 points in sixth place, lagging behind on goal difference, while Al-Masry's score froze at 6 points in tenth place after a third loss in a row.
Earlier Tuesday, Modern Sport defeated its host, Assiut Petroleum, 2-0, in the fifth round of the Egyptian Premier League, temporarily rising to the golden square in the standings.
Modern ended the first half ahead with a goal scored by Mohamed Sharqia with a header in the 31st minute of the match held at the Army Stadium in Borg El Arab in Alexandria.
In the 82nd minute, Mohamed Sabry added Modern's second goal with a long-range shot, taking advantage of the goalkeeper's advance.
Assiut Petroleum was affected by the lack of numbers in its ranks after its player Ahmed Khaled was sent off in the 62nd minute.
With this result, Modern Sport is equal with 10 points with Zamalek and Al-Ittihad.
Assiut Petroleum, which was newly promoted to the Premier League this season, suffered its third loss in a row, leaving its score frozen at two points in nineteenth and penultimate place.
At the same time, Arab Contractors defeated its host Wadi Degla, 2-0, at Al Salam Stadium.
Al-Mokawloon sealed the win with two late goals, scored by Idrissa Thiam and Mustafa Gamal from a penalty kick in the 80th and 94th minutes.
Al-Mokawloon continued its revival with two wins and a draw in the last 3 rounds, raising its score to 7 points in seventh place, while Wadi Degla’s score froze at 5 points in twelfth place.
