Dubai: The Arabian Gulf League for 2021-22 season will kick off on August 19-20, followed by matchweek 2 on August 25-26 before breaking off for national team’s first training camp for the final round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers.
The UAE Pro League (UAEPL) approved the calendar of its competitions for the upcoming season, while the draw ceremony of the AGL and the Arabian Gulf Cup will be held on Wednesday (June 30) at Rixos Premium Dubai JBR Hotel from 8pm UAE time.
The calendar was released after a series of coordination meetings between the work groups in the UAE Football Association, the UAE Pro League, and professional club representatives. The UAEPL confirmed that supporting the national team ahead of the final round of the 2022 World Cup qualifiers in September remains a national priority.
Four matchweeks of AGL will be held in September 2021, matchweek 3 will be played on September 10-11, followed by matchweek 4 on 16-18, matchweek 5 on September 23-24 and matchweek 6 on September 28-29.
The national team’s second training camp will be followed by two matchweeks in October 2021 - matchweek 7 will take place on October 21, 22 and 23, followed by matchweek 8 on October 28-29.The first half of the season concludes with matchweek 13 on January 6-7, 2022.
The Arabian Gulf Cup will get underway on October 15-16. Meanwhile, the Arabian Gulf Super Cup match between Arabian Gulf League champions Al Jazira and UAE President’s Cup titleholders Shabab Al Ahli will be held on January 10, 2022.
The Arabian Gulf Cup will adopt a two-legged knockout system in the qualifying round, the quarter-final, and the semi-final for the second year in a row. The final, however, will have a single leg and will take place at a neutral venue.
All teams, except the seeded Al Jazira and Shabab Al Ahli, will be split into two bowls in the draw, according to their rankings in the 2020-21 season. The first bowl will include Bani Yas, Sharjah, Al Nasr, Al Ain, Al Wahda, and Ittihad Kalba while Al Wasl, Khorfakkan, Al Dhafra, Ajman, Al Orooba and Emirates Club will be placed in the second bowl.
The UAEPL has invited a host of former players for the draw ceremony, including former Al Wahda player Ahmed Al Akberi, Seif Salem Saad, son of former player Salem Saad and Omar Emad Othman, son of media personality Emad Othman.
