Bahrain await expanded Gulf draw

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

Bahrain’s under-17 football team will discover their group-stage opponents today when the draw for the expanded 2026 Gulf U17 Cup is held.

Scheduled for October 16 to November 4 in Qatar, the tournament will feature a record 10 nations in its largest field to date.

Egypt and China will join the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation’s eight member nations as invited participants. Their inclusion is intended to provide young Gulf players with stronger and more varied opposition ahead of future international assignments.

Today’s proceedings will be conducted virtually from the governing body’s headquarters in Doha at 12pm.

Five seeding pots have been formed, with Bahrain placed alongside Yemen in Pot Four. Qatar and Saudi Arabia occupy Pot One, followed by the UAE and Iraq in Pot Two.

Kuwait and Oman make up Pot Three, while the two guest teams complete the seedings in Pot Five.

The sides will be split into two groups of five. Hosts Qatar will head Group A, while holders Saudi Arabia take their place at the top of Group B.

The leading two from each section will advance to the semi-finals. The Group A winners face the Group B runners-up, while the Group B winners meet the second-placed side from Group A.

This will be the second edition since the youth tournament was relaunched under the federation last year. However, its roots stretch back to the former GCC U17 Championship, first staged in 2001.

Bahrain endured a difficult campaign in 2025, losing 4-0 to Saudi Arabia and 2-0 to Iraq. A narrow 3-2 defeat against Kuwait then ended their involvement in the group stage.

The eventual champions went on to beat the UAE 2-0 in the final at Grand Hamad Stadium in Doha, securing their sixth title overall. Abdulaziz Al Fawaz and Abdulrahman Sufyani scored the goals, with the latter also named the tournament’s best player.

The Gulf event will provide Bahrain with their final competitive preparation for the 2027 AFC U17 Asian Cup qualifiers, which begin four days later in Salalah. The kingdom will face Kuwait, Brunei Darussalam, hosts Oman and Lebanon in Group G, with only the top side advancing to the continental finals.