Saudi, UAE, and Bahrain out of Gulf Cup

Kuwait given 15 days to solve problems with FIFA

DOHA, Nov 16, (AFP): Gulf Cup organisers on Thursday said Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates and Bahrain had “withdrawn” from the Qatarhosted tournament, amid a deepening political crisis in the region.

Tournament bosses said

Qatar’s Bassam Husham al-Rawi (left), vies for the ball against Iceland’s Arnori Ingvi Traustason during the friendly football match between Iceland and Qatar at the Abdullah bin Nasser bin Khalifa Stadium in Doha

on Nov 14. (AFP)

they had received no response from the three federations to questions about their participation in the competition, scheduled to start on Dec 22.

A deadline for Saudi, UAE and Bahrain to accept a written invitation from the Gulf Cup Football Federation (GCFF) passed earlier this week.

“There was no response to our letter and they are withdrawn from the tournament,” said Jassim alRumaihi, GCFF general secretary.

Doubts have hung over the Gulf Cup because of a bitter dispute involving Qatar and its neighbours, including Saudi Arabia, UAE and Bahrain, which threatens to destabilise the region.

The crisis erupted on June 5 when Qatar was politically and economically boycotted by a quartet of neighbouring countries over its alleged support for terrorist groups and relations with Iran.

The 2022 World Cup host denies the charges.

Thursday’s decision, taken at a meeting in Doha, means the tournament has become the first high-profile sporting victim of the diplomatic dispute.

The only chance that it will go ahead now rests with Kuwait, which was given a Nov 30 deadline on Thursday to say if they will play in the competition.

If that deadline cannot be met, then the tournament will be cancelled, said the GCFF.

Although Kuwait is not part of the political dispute — it has acted as a regional mediator since the crisis began back in June — its football association has its own problems and remains suspended by FIFA, which means it is unclear if its team is eligible to play in the tournament.

“We have given 15 days for Kuwait to solve their problems,” said Rumaihi.