Mahdi Ali wins GCC Coach of the Year award

Dubai: The UAE national football team’s manager Mahdi Ali received recognition for his excellence in 2013 by winning the GCC Coach of the Year accolade at the Globe Soccer Awards at Madinat Jumeirah on Sunday night.

Ali’s honour is due reward for his efforts in leading the UAE to their second Gulf Cup win after beating Iraq in Bahrain in January and helping them qualify for the 2015 Asian Cup.

The Emirati joined world football luminaries at the prestigious ceremony, including Bayern Munich boss Pep Guardiola, who won the Most Successful Coach award, and former England coach and current Russia manager Fabio Capello, who presented Ali with his accolade.

Other high-profile footballing figures at the event were Juventus manager Antonio Conte, who won the Best Coach of the Year award, while Barcelona and Spain midfield ace Xavi Hernandez picked up the Player Career honour.

Xavi, Conte, Guardiola, Capello and Bayern Munich and France star Franck Ribery, who won the Globe Soccer Award for 2013, were in Dubai for Saturday and Sunday’s Dubai International Sports Conference, which was also held at Madinat Jumeirah.

The event was held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Sports Council, with the title ‘Empowering the Future of Football’.