The 26th Arabian Gulf Cup, known as Khaleeji Zain 26 for sponsorship reasons, will be the 26th edition of the biennial football competition for the eight members of the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation. The tournament will be held in Kuwait from 21 December 2024 to 3 January 2025.[2][3]

26th Arabian Gulf Cup
كأس الخليج العربي 26
Tournament details
Host countryKuwait
Dates21 December 2024 – 3 January 2025[1]
Teams8 (from 1 confederation)
2023

Teams

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Team Appearance Previous best
performance
FIFA Rankings
November 2024
  Qatar 26th Winners (1992, 2004, 2014) 48
  Iraq (holders) 17th Winners (1979, 1984, 1988, 2023) 56
  Saudi Arabia 25th Winners (1994, 2002, 2003–04) 59
  United Arab Emirates 25th Winners (2007, 2013) 63
  Bahrain 26th Winners (2019) 81
  Oman 24th Winners (2009, 2017–18) 80
  Kuwait (hosts) 26th Winners (1970, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1996, 1998, 2010) 134
  Yemen 11th Group stage (2003–04, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2013, 2014, 2017–18, 2019, 2023) 157

Venues

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Location of areas hosting the 26th Arabian Gulf Cup

Hosting venues list will be finalized in 2024.

  Kuwait City
Ardhiya Sulaibikhat
Jaber Al-Ahmad International Stadium Sulaibikhat Stadium
Capacity: 60,000 Capacity: 15,000 (new)
   

Draw

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The draw was held on 9 November 2024 at 19:00 UTC+3 in Kuwait City .The eight teams were drawn into two groups of four, by selecting one team from each of the four ranked pots.

Pot 1 Pot 2 Pot 3 Pot 4

Squads

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Group stage

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All times are local (UTC+03:00).

Group A

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   United Arab Emirates 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Knockout stage
2   Qatar 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3   Kuwait (H) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4   Oman 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 2024. Source: AGCFF
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
(H) Hosts
Kuwait  v  Oman
United Arab Emirates  v  Qatar

Oman  v  Qatar
United Arab Emirates  v  Kuwait

Kuwait  v  Qatar
United Arab Emirates  v  Oman

Group B

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Iraq 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Knockout stage
2   Saudi Arabia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
3   Bahrain 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4   Yemen 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
First match(es) will be played: 2024. Source: AGCFF
Rules for classification: Group stage tiebreakers
Iraq  v  Yemen
Saudi Arabia  v  Bahrain

Bahrain  v  Iraq
Yemen  v  Saudi Arabia

Iraq  v  Saudi Arabia
Bahrain  v  Yemen

Knockout stage

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In the knockout stage, extra time and penalty shoot-out are used to decide the winner if necessary.

Bracket

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Semi-finalsFinal
 
      
 
31 December 2024 –
 
 
Winner Group A
 
3 January 2025 –
 
Runner-up Group B
 
Winner Semi-final 1
 
31 December 2024 –
 
Winner Semi-final 2
 
Winner Group B
 
 
Runner-up Group A
 

Semi-finals

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Winner Group ASemi-final 1Runner-up Group B

Winner Group BSemi-final 2Runner-up Group A

Final

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Winner Semi-final 1vWinner Semi-final 2

Prize money and awards

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Prize money

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Position Amount (USD)
Champions 1,000,000
Runner-up 750,000
Total 1,750,000


Broadcasters

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Middle East

Territory Broadcaster Ref.
  Kuwait KTV Sports
  Bahrain Bahrain Sport
  Saudi Arabia SSC
  United Arab Emirates AD Sports

Dubai Sports

  Qatar Alkass
  Oman Oman Sports
  Iraq Al Iraqiya Sports

Alrabiaa Sports

References

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  1. ^ "كونا : الاتحاد الخليجي لكرة القدم يقرر انطلاق (خليجي 26) في 21 ديسمبر المقبل" (in Arabic). KUNA. 2 April 2024.
  2. ^ "Kuwait to host 26th Gulf Cup". Iraqi News. 2023-01-09. Retrieved 2023-01-15.
  3. ^ "خليجي 26 سيقام في الكويت نهاية عام 2024". beIN SPORTS (in Arabic). Retrieved 2023-01-15.