Kings League MENA: Saudi teams dominate as leaders suffer first defeat

The Kings League MENA Split 1 group stage was thrown open after Ultra Chmicha suffered their first defeat of the tournament, while Saudi Arabian sides DR7, Rising Peaks and RA2 FC all claimed important victories in round six.

With only three rounds remaining, the results have intensified the battle for a place in the semi-final play-offs.

RA2 FC produced the biggest result of the evening by beating previously unbeaten Ultra Chmicha 7-6. Mark Sorouchi was central to the victory, scoring a hat-trick that included a double goal after the team used the star-player card.

Team president Raed also converted the president’s penalty. After the match reached 6-6 in Matchball Mode, Diego Jimenez scored the winning goal to give RA2 FC a memorable victory.

Defending champions DR7 secured their fourth win of the season against Egypt’s Turbo, prevailing on penalties after a fiercely contested match.

The game finished 2-2 after 36 minutes and remained level at 3-3 after the first penalty shootout round. The tie therefore went to a second decisive round, where Igokannendi scored the kick that won the contest for DR7. Their goalkeeper, Davy “Major” Nathan, then saved the final penalty.

The victory came as DR7 officially announced the appointment of Khaled Al-Ghannam as the club’s new vice-president. Turbo, led by team president “Dobriha”, suffered their fourth defeat.

Rising Peaks, led by content creator and team president Abdulrahman Al-Shahri, continued their impressive recovery with a third consecutive win. They beat Jordanian side 3BS 7-3, with Abdullah Al-Maghribi scoring four times, including a double goal and the decisive strike in Matchball Mode.

The result underlined Rising Peaks’ revival after they stumbled in their first three matches. 3BS, whose shock win over FWZ last week drew attention, were beaten for the fourth time in the competition.

FWZ responded to last week’s defeat with a record-breaking 13-3 victory over Qatar’s ABO FC. Led by team president and content creator “Fawaz”, the Kuwaiti side recorded the biggest win and highest individual match total in Kings League MENA history.

FWZ converted a president’s penalty and exploited double-goal opportunities twice on their way to a fifth victory this season. ABO FC, led by content creator “Aboflah”, have now lost four matches in a row after beginning the campaign with two successive wins.

Bakhira FC beat Jordan’s Red Zone 7-4 for their second league-phase victory. Mehdi Qassem scored the double goal and the decisive winner, while both teams converted their president’s penalties. Red Zone, led by “Maherco”, suffered their third defeat.

Three rounds remain on 9, 16 and 23 October, before the quarter-finals begin on 26 October. The team finishing first advances directly to the semi-finals. Teams placed second to seventh enter the quarter-finals: second and third meet sixth and seventh, while fourth and fifth contest the final semi-final place.

Round seven takes place at Cola Arena on Friday, 9 October. Matches are available through the competition’s official channels on Kick, YouTube, TikTok and Twitch, with MBC Action and Shahid providing live coverage across the Middle East and North Africa.