Riffa placed in Pot Four for Gulf draw

TDT | Manama

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Riffa have been placed in Pot Four for today’s draw for the 2026-27 Gulf Club Champions League as they prepare to represent Bahrain in the expanded regional competition.

The draw for the third edition of the tournament under the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation (AGCFF) will be conducted virtually at 12pm Bahrain time.

Riffa will be joined in Pot Four by Kuwait’s Kazma and Yemen’s Shaab Hadhramaut, with the seedings based on the Asian Football Confederation’s member association rankings for the 2026-27 season.

Saudi Arabian pair Al Ettifaq and Neom are in Pot One alongside the UAE’s Al Nasr, while Pot Two features UAE side Ajman and Qatari duo Al Duhail and Qatar SC.

Iraq’s Erbil and Al Zawraa have been placed in Pot Three alongside Oman’s Al Shabab.

The 12 participating clubs will be drawn into three groups of four, with each group featuring one team from each pot. Clubs from the same national association cannot be drawn together.

This season will feature the largest field in the competition’s history following its expansion from eight to 12 clubs, representing eight Gulf football associations.

The tournament is scheduled to run from October 13 until April 30 next year, with the top two teams from each group advancing to the quarter-finals along with the two best third-placed sides. The knockout rounds will then be contested over two legs.

Riffa will be looking to make their mark on their return to the Gulf stage under Kuwaiti head coach Mohamed Mashaan after a strong finish to their domestic campaign last season.

The Blues finished third in the Nasser bin Hamad Premier League with 49 points from 22 matches and ended the season with silverware after beating Muharraq on penalties to lift the Khalid bin Hamad Cup. They also reached the King’s Cup final, where they were beaten by the same opponents.

Sitra represented Bahrain in last season’s Gulf Club Champions League but were eliminated in the group stage, while Qatar’s Al Rayyan went on to lift the title.

Bahraini clubs have previously tasted success in the competition, with Muharraq becoming the kingdom’s first winners in 2012. The Red Wolves also finished runners-up in 1989.