Al Wahda FC

Al Wahda FC
نادي الوحـدة لكرة القدم
Full name	Al Wahda Football Club
Founded	1984; 40 years ago
Ground	Al Nahyan Stadium
Capacity	15,000
Owner	Diab Bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Manager	Pitso Mosimane
League	UAE Pro League
2022–23	UAE Pro League, 3rd
Website	http://www.alwahda-sc.com
Home colours	Away colours
	Current season

Al Wahda Football Club (Template:Lang-ar) is an Emirati professional football club based in Abu Dhabi, that competes in the UAE Pro League.^[2] The club was founded in 1974 and plays its home games at the Al Nahyan Stadium. The club's colours are maroon, navy blue and white.

History

Foundation

The first team created in Abu Dhabi was Al-Ahli in 1966, followed respectively by Al-Ittihad in 1968, Al-Falah and Al-Wahda in 1969. In 1974, a decision was made by the Minister of youth and sport to create Abu Dhabi SC by merging Al-Ittihad and Al-Wahda on 13 March 1974, and to create Al-Emirates SC by merging Al-Ahli and Al-Falah on 3 June 1974. In 1984, Abu Dhabi SC and Al-Emirates SC merged to create Al-Wahda FC.

Modern era

In 1999, Al Wahda won their maiden UAE League title with 8 points ahead of their rivals Al Ain. In 2018, Al Wahda changed its official logo as part of a new club redesign.

Honours

Leagues

UAE Pro League: 4

Champions: 1998–99, 2000–01, 2004–05, 2009–10

UAE Division One: 2

Champions: 1976–77, 1984–85

Cups

UAE President's Cup: 2

Champions: 1999–2000, 2016–17

UAE Federation Cup: 3

Champions: 1986, 1995, 2001

UAE League Cup: 2

Champions: 2015–16, 2017–18

UAE Super Cup: 4

Champions: 2002, 2011, 2017, 2018^[3]

Home stadium

The Al-Nahyan Stadium is the home of Al Wahda.^[4] It has 15,000 seats and located only three kilometers from the downtown at the heart of Abu Dhabi City.

Performance in AFC competitions

Al Wahda has been qualifying for Asian competitions regularly since the 1998–99 Asian Cup Winners' Cup, they've been qualifying for the AFC Champions League regularly by winning the President's Cup or consistently finishing near the top in the league.

Al Wahda's season-by-season record in international competitions
¹ Group stage. Highest-ranked eliminated team in case of qualification, lowest-ranked qualified team in case of elimination.
Asian Club Championship / AFC Champions League
Season	Preliminary stages			Round of 32	Round of 16	Quarter-finals	Semi-finals	Final
2000					Al-Sadd
2002					Al-Zawraa	Nasaf Qarshi¹
2004					Al-Sadd¹	Pakhtakor
2006					Al-Karamah¹
2007					Al-Zawraa¹	Al-Hilal	Sepahan
2008					Al-Karamah¹
2010		Al-Karamah	Churchill Brothers	Esteghlal¹
2011				Bunyodkor¹
2015			Al-Sadd
2017			Al-Wehdat	Persepolis¹
2018				Zob Ahan¹
2019				Lokomotiv Tashkent¹	Al-Nassr
2021			Al-Zawraa	FC Goa¹	Sharjah	Al-Nassr
Asian Cup Winners' Cup
Season	Preliminary stages			Round of 32	Round of 16	Quarter-finals	Semi-finals	Final
1999					Kazma
2001					Esteghlal
Arab Club Champions Cup
Season	Preliminary stages			Round of 32	Round of 16	Quarter-finals	Semi-finals	Final
2017						Al Ahly¹
2023			Bourj	ASFAR	CR Belouizdad¹	Al Shabab
FIFA Club World Cup
Season	Preliminary stages						Semi-finals / Fifth match	Final / Third match
2010					Hekari United	Seongnam	Pachuca

AFC Champions League: 12 appearances

2004: Quarter-finals

2006: Group stage

2007: Semi-finals

2008: Group stage

2010: Group stage

2011: Group stage

2015: Play-offs

2017: Group stage

2018: Group stage

2019: Round of 16

2020: Withdrew

2021: Quarter-finals

Asian Club Championship: 2 appearances

1999–2000: First round

2001–02: Group stage (Top 8)

Asian Cup Winners Cup: 2 appearances

1998–99: First round

2000–01: First round

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	UAE	Mohammed Al-Shamsi
2	DF	UAE	Khalid Butti
3	DF	UAE	Lucas Pimenta
5	DF	UAE	Alaeddine Zouhir
6	DF	UAE	Mahmoud Khamees
7	MF	IRN	Ahmad Nourollahi
8	MF	UAE	Tahnoon Al-Zaabi
10	MF	UAE	Ismail Matar (captain)
11	MF	ARG	Cristian Guanca (on loan from Al-Shabab)
12	MF	UAE	Abdulla Hamad
13	MF	UAE	Manea Aydh
14	MF	UAE	Abdulaziz Mohamed
16	MF	UAE	Abdulla Ahmed ^U21
18	MF	UAE	Hamdan Adel
19	DF	POR	Rúben Canedo
20	FW	UAE	Mansoor Saeed ^U21
21	DF	UAE	Abdullah Al-Karbi
22	FW	KGZ	Avtandil Duishoev ^U21
23	MF	UAE	Abdullah Kazim


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
24	DF	UAE	Sultan Al-Zaabi (on loan from Shabab Al-Ahli)
25	MF	BRA	Allan
27	MF	ARG	Facundo Kruspzky
29	MF	UAE	Suhail Al-Mansoori
30	MF	RUS	Zelimkhan Bakayev (on loan from Zenit)
31	DF	UAE	Abdurahman Saleh ^U21
44	DF	UAE	Fares Jumaa
46	FW	SEN	Moussa Senghor ^U21
50	GK	UAE	Rashed Ali
64	DF	UAE	Rashed Issam ^U21
66	GK	UAE	Hazaa Ammar
68	DF	UAE	Mohamed Ali
70	FW	SYR	Omar Kharbin
75	FW	UAE	Mubarak Salem ^U21
77	FW	UAE	Awadh Al-Katheeri ^U21
78	DF	UAE	Mansour Saleh ^U21
80	FW	YEM	Salem Al-Somhi ^U21
83	FW	UAE	Mohamed Al-Senaani ^U21
84	GK	UAE	Khalifa Hamad ^U21

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	UAE	Zayed Al-Hammadi (on loan to Al Bataeh)


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	DF	BRA	Gian (on loan to Ajman)

Coaching staff

Position	Name
Manager	Pitso Mosimane

Past managers

Helmy Toulan (1979–84)
Heshmat Mohajerani (1984–86)
Slobodan Halilović (1991–92)
Mahmoud El-Gohary (1995–96)
Jo Bonfrère (1998–99)
Ruud Krol (1999)
Dimitri Davidovic (1999–00)
Rinus Israël (2000–01)
Jo Bonfrère (2001–02)
Cemşir Muratoğlu (2002–03)
Rolf Fringer (March 14, 2003 – June 30, 2003)
Rolland Courbis (July 1, 2003 – Nov 30, 2003)
Rinus Israël (Dec 1, 2003 – June 30, 2004)
Ahmad Abdel-Halim (2004–0?)
Reiner Hollmann (July 1, 2005 – April 3, 2006)
Richard Tardy (200?–Aug 4, 2006)
Horst Köppel (Aug 5, 2006 – Oct 11, 2006)^[5]
Jo Bonfrere (Dec 13, 2007 – Dec 17, 2008)
Josef Hickersberger (Dec 10, 2008 – June 1, 2010)
László Bölöni (May 29, 2010 – Sept 2, 2010)^[6]
Tite (Aug 31, 2010 – Oct 19, 2010)
Josef Hickersberger (Oct 22, 2010 – June 30, 2012)
Branko Ivanković (May 20, 2012 – April 28, 2013)
Josef Hickersberger (April 28, 2013 – July 15, 2013)
Karel Jarolím (July 15, 2013 – Nov 9, 2013)
José Peseiro (Nov 11, 2013 – Jan 11, 2015)
Sami Al-Jaber (Jan 11, 2015 – May 19, 2015)
Javier Aguirre (June 18, 2015 – May 20, 2017)^[7]
Laurențiu Reghecampf (July 3, 2017 – November 25, 2018)
Henk ten Cate (December 7, 2018 – May 26, 2019)
Maurice Steijn (June 9, 2019 – October 17, 2019)
Manuel Jiménez (October 17, 2019 – July 18, 2020)^[8]
Mark Wotte (July 18, 2020 – September 8, 2020)
Vuk Rasovic (September 8, 2020 – March 12, 2021)^[9]
Henk ten Cate (March 13, 2021 – October 25, 2021)
Grégory Dufrennes (October 26, 2021 – June 3, 2022)
Carlos Carvalhal (July 1, 2022 – October 2, 2022)^[10]
Manuel Jiménez (October 5, 2022 – March 12, 2023)
Arno Buitenweg (March 13, 2023 – June 17, 2023)
Pitso Mosimane (June 18, 2023 – Present)

Pro-League record

Season	Lvl.	Tms.	Pos.	President's Cup	League Cup
2008–09	16	12	4th	Semi-Finals	Runner-ups
2009–10	1	12	1st	Semi-Finals	Semi-Finals
2010–11	1	12	5th	Runner-ups	Semi-Finals
2011–12	1	12	6th	Semi-Finals	First Round
2012–13	1	14	7th	Semi-Finals	Semi-Finals
2013–14	1	14	2nd	Quarter-Finals	First Round
2014–15	1	14	4th	Round of 16	First Round
2015–16	1	14	3rd	Round of 16	Champions
2016–17	1	14	5th	Champions	First Round
2017–18	1	12	2nd	Semi-Finals	Champions
2018–19	1	14	3rd	Round of 16	Runner-ups
2019–20^a	1	14	5th	Round of 16	Quarter-Finals
2020–21	1	14	7th	Round of 16	First Round
2021–22	1	14	3rd	Runner-ups	Semi-Finals
2022–23	1	14	3rd	Preliminary Round	Quarter-Finals

_{Notes^ 2019–20 UAE football season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates.}

Key

Pos. = Position
Tms. = Number of teams
Lvl. = League

References

^ "نبذة عن منشآت نادي الوحدة الرياضي". Archived from the original on 2015-03-17. Retrieved 2015-03-10.
^ Al Wahda FC (UAE): club profile, squad, fixtures and achieves Archived 2021-04-30 at the Wayback Machine Soccerway.com. Retrieved 16 April 2021
^ "Al Ain FC 3 : 3 , 222: 4 PAl Wahda FC". globalsportsarchive.com. Global Sports Archive. 25 August 2018. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
^ "Al Wahda – Clubs – UAE Pro League Committee". Al Wahda Club. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
^ "Köppel wechselt in die VAE". kicker (in German). 5 August 2006. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2013.
^ Bölöni appointed as head coach of Al-Wahda Archived 6 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine
^ Cerezo, Hugo (18 June 2015). "Javier Aguirre ficha por el Al Wahda". Marca (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
^ Jose, James (17 October 2019). "Al Jazira, Al Wahda appoint new managers". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
^ "Al Wahda set to name Vuk Rasovic as new coach ahead of Asian Champions League resumption". thenational. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2021.
^ "Carlos Carvalhal leaves Al Wahda". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 5 October 2022.

External links

Official website (in Arabic)
Al Wahda FC on Facebook

[1] "نبذة عن منشآت نادي الوحدة الرياضي". Archived from the original on 2015-03-17. Retrieved 2015-03-10.

[2] Al Wahda FC (UAE): club profile, squad, fixtures and achieves Archived 2021-04-30 at the Wayback Machine Soccerway.com. Retrieved 16 April 2021

[STATS_AND_INFO-3] "Al Ain FC 3 : 3 , 222: 4 PAl Wahda FC". globalsportsarchive.com. Global Sports Archive. 25 August 2018. Archived from the original on 17 April 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.

[4] "Al Wahda – Clubs – UAE Pro League Committee". Al Wahda Club. Archived from the original on 1 April 2019. Retrieved 17 April 2021.

[alwahdajob-5] "Köppel wechselt in die VAE". kicker (in German). 5 August 2006. Archived from the original on 18 May 2014. Retrieved 9 February 2013.

[6] Bölöni appointed as head coach of Al-Wahda Archived 6 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine

[7] Cerezo, Hugo (18 June 2015). "Javier Aguirre ficha por el Al Wahda". Marca (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 17 April 2021.

[8] Jose, James (17 October 2019). "Al Jazira, Al Wahda appoint new managers". Khaleej Times. Archived from the original on 23 January 2021. Retrieved 17 April 2021.

[9] "Al Wahda set to name Vuk Rasovic as new coach ahead of Asian Champions League resumption". thenational. Archived from the original on 3 July 2022. Retrieved 17 April 2021.

[10] "Carlos Carvalhal leaves Al Wahda". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 5 October 2022.

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v t e Al Wahda Football Club
History Presidents Seasons International Statistics Current season
Home stadiums	Al Nahyan Stadium
Rivalries	Al Jazira Al Ain

v t e Football teams in UAE
UAE Pro League	Ajman Al Ain Al Bataeh Al Jazira Al Nasr Al Orooba Al-Sharjah Al Wahda Al Wasl Baniyas Dibba Al Hisn Kalba Khor Fakkan Shabab Al-Ahli
UAE First Division League	Al Arabi Al Dhafra Al Dhaid Al-Fujairah Al Hamriyah Al Jazirah Al Hamra Dibba Al Fujairah Emirates Fleetwood United Gulf Gulf United Hatta Majd Masfout United
UAE Second Division League	Al Ittifaq Al Mooj Arabian Falcons Baynounah D-Gardens Dubai City Elite Falcons Fursan Hispania Gulf B HPC Laval Madenat Precision Regional Royal
UAE Third Division League	AFC AL Ethihad Al Hilal Al Qabila Dibba Al Fujairah B Dubai City B Emerald Falcon Gulf United B Irish Liver Sport Support Sporting Sporty PE Sports TFA United Sport United B
Other clubs	Al Gharbia Al Madam Al Rams Al Taawon Al Wathba Falaj Al Mualla Green Herons Masafi Mleiha Ras Al Khaimah
Defunct clubs	Al Dar Al Falah Al-Hazem Al Nujoom Al-Quwwat Al-Musallaha Al Rimal Al Shaab Al Shabab Atletico Arabia Dubai Inter City Liwa Quattro Zamalek