Gulf Cup 27 opens in Jeddah as nine legends launch Saudi Arabia tournament

The 27th edition of the Arabian Gulf Cup has officially opened in Jeddah, with nine of the competition’s former stars taking part in the ceremony before Saudi Arabia faced Kuwait.

The opening event was held at Alinma Stadium shortly before the first match of the tournament. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait met in the opening round of Group A at the Jeddah venue, as the hosts began their campaign in front of a home crowd.

The ceremony was organised by the Gulf Cup Football Federation and featured legends representing the eight nations competing in the tournament. Their appearance formed the centrepiece of the programme before the start of the match.

The former stars included Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Noor, the United Arab Emirates’ Fahad Khamis, Bahrain’s Hamood Sultan, Oman’s Imad Al Hosni, Iraq’s Hussein Saeed, Qatar’s Ibrahim Khalfan, Kuwait’s Fahad Al Ansari and Yemen’s Ali Al Nono.

At the conclusion of the presentation, Saudi football great Mohammed Abduljawad entered the pitch carrying the Arabian Gulf Cup trophy. His appearance formally marked the start of the 27th edition of the competition.

The tournament is being staged in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, during the current period, with eight national teams divided between two groups.

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq and Oman make up Group A, while Group B consists of Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Yemen.

The opening ceremony and the participation of the former players were also featured in footage shared by Al Kass Channels on 23 September 2026. The video highlighted the contribution of past national-team stars to the history of the Gulf competition before this year’s tournament got under way.

The involvement of the nine legends provided a link between previous editions of the Arabian Gulf Cup and the latest tournament, while Mohammed Abduljawad’s presentation of the trophy brought the official opening proceedings to a close before the opening fixture continued.