Cristiano Ronaldo broke another record on Thursday when he became the most-capped player in men’s international football.
Ronaldo, who scored twice in his 197th appearance for Portugal, is a household name and one of the world’s biggest sporting stars.
But the record he beat was from a far less well-known player — Kuwait’s Bader Ahmed Al Mutawa, who has 196 international appearances.
Here is everything you need to know about the Kuwaiti veteran.
Qadsia club legend
Al Mutawa was born in Kuwait in 1985.
He joined the most successful football club in Kuwait’s history, Al Qadsia Sporting Club, as a youth player in 1994.
He graduated to the senior team in 2002, and made his debut aged 17, playing as a striker.
Al Mutawa went on to play more than 250 games for Qadsia, and reportedly scored more than 150 goals.
During his career with the club, he helped them win eight Kuwait Premier League titles, six Kuwait Emir Cups, and various other domestic trophies.
Qadsia also won the regional GCC Champions League for just the second time in its history in 2005, finishing one point ahead of the UAE’s Al Wasl.
Al Mutawa spent two brief periods on loan during his career with Qadsia. In the 2006-2007 season he reportedly played one league game for Qatar SC in Doha, before returning to Qadsia.
In 2010-11, Al Mutawa was loaned out to Al Nassr — the Riyadh club currently captained by Ronaldo. He scored three goals in nine league appearances for the club, which had a difficult season and finished fifth.
In 2012, Al Mutawa had a brief trial at English club Nottingham Forest. Manager Sean O’Driscoll was reportedly impressed by Al Mutawa during his month of training with the club, and he played in a friendly against West Brom, in which Nottingham Forest News said he “looked lively".
However, issues with work permits prevented the club from signing Al Mutawa, and he returned to Qadsia.
He has played in every season since, including 14 appearances in the current season.
Al Mutawa was nominated for the 2006 and 2010 Asian Footballer of the Year award but lost out on both occasions.
International career
Al Mutawa made his debut for Kuwait in 2003. He scored in his first game and quickly impressed Brazilian coach Paulo Cesar Carpegiani, becoming a regular starter.
He played in the Arabian Gulf Cup that year, which was hosted by Kuwait, and scored in his team’s only victory in the tournament.
The striker led Kuwait to victory in the 2010 Arabian Gulf Cup, finishing as joint top scorer with three goals, including one in the semi-final against Iraq. It was Kuwait’s first Arabian Gulf Cup title since 1998.
The national team has not qualified for the Fifa World Cup during Al Mutawa’s playing career, but he has scored 12 goals in World Cup qualifiers. He also represented Kuwait in qualifiers for the 2004 and 2008 Olympic Games.
In total, Al Mutawa has scored 56 goals and is the country’s third top scorer, behind Bashar Abdullah with 76 and Jassem Al Houwaidi with 63.
In 2021, aged 36, he became the most capped international player in the world, overtaking Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan with his 185th appearance.
His achievements were recognised by Fifa and he was granted an award by the head of the Kuwaiti Football Federation.
His most recent appearance for Kuwait was in June in a 3-0 loss against Jordan. This was his 196th appearance — now one less than Ronaldo’s 197.
Other Arab players with record appearances
Arab players are a notable presence in the list of male footballers with the most international appearances.
Egypt’s Ahmed Hassan is currently the fourth most-capped player, with 184 appearances for his country between 1995 and 2012.
One appearance behind him is Oman’s Ahmed Mubarak, who played 183 games between 2003 and 2019.
Saudi Arabia’s Mohamed Al Deayea has 178 caps for his country, while Jordan’s Amer Shafi has 173 — the same number as Lionel Messi for Argentina.
Qatar’s Hassan Al Haydos (171 appearances) and Saudi Arabia’s Mohammed Al Khilaiwai (163 appearances) are also both in the top 20.
The UAE’s most-capped player is Adnan Al Talyani, with 161 appearances, placing him equal 23rd in the list globally.
Al Talyani played as striker and scored 52 goals for the UAE between 1982 and 1997.
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
RESULT
Norway 1 Spain 1
Norway: King (90 4')
Spain: Niguez (47')
THE BIO
Bio Box
Role Model: Sheikh Zayed, God bless his soul
Favorite book: Zayed Biography of the leader
Favorite quote: To be or not to be, that is the question, from William Shakespeare's Hamlet
Favorite food: seafood
Favorite place to travel: Lebanon
Favorite movie: Braveheart
Scoreline
Australia 2-1 Thailand
Australia: Juric 69', Leckie 86'
Thailand: Pokklaw 82'
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Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
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Apple product price list
iPad Pro
11" - $799 (64GB)
12.9" - $999 (64GB)
MacBook Air
$1,199
Mac Mini
$799
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
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Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
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Match info
Liverpool 3
Hoedt (10' og), Matip (21'), Salah (45 3')
Southampton 0
Mercer, the investment consulting arm of US services company Marsh & McLennan, expects its wealth division to at least double its assets under management (AUM) in the Middle East as wealth in the region continues to grow despite economic headwinds, a company official said.
Mercer Wealth, which globally has $160 billion in AUM, plans to boost its AUM in the region to $2-$3bn in the next 2-3 years from the present $1bn, said Yasir AbuShaban, a Dubai-based principal with Mercer Wealth.
“Within the next two to three years, we are looking at reaching $2 to $3 billion as a conservative estimate and we do see an opportunity to do so,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Mercer does not directly make investments, but allocates clients’ money they have discretion to, to professional asset managers. They also provide advice to clients.
“We have buying power. We can negotiate on their (client’s) behalf with asset managers to provide them lower fees than they otherwise would have to get on their own,” he added.
Mercer Wealth’s clients include sovereign wealth funds, family offices, and insurance companies among others.
From its office in Dubai, Mercer also looks after Africa, India and Turkey, where they also see opportunity for growth.
Wealth creation in Middle East and Africa (MEA) grew 8.5 per cent to $8.1 trillion last year from $7.5tn in 2015, higher than last year’s global average of 6 per cent and the second-highest growth in a region after Asia-Pacific which grew 9.9 per cent, according to consultancy Boston Consulting Group (BCG). In the region, where wealth grew just 1.9 per cent in 2015 compared with 2014, a pickup in oil prices has helped in wealth generation.
BCG is forecasting MEA wealth will rise to $12tn by 2021, growing at an annual average of 8 per cent.
Drivers of wealth generation in the region will be split evenly between new wealth creation and growth of performance of existing assets, according to BCG.
Another general trend in the region is clients’ looking for a comprehensive approach to investing, according to Mr AbuShaban.
“Institutional investors or some of the families are seeing a slowdown in the available capital they have to invest and in that sense they are looking at optimizing the way they manage their portfolios and making sure they are not investing haphazardly and different parts of their investment are working together,” said Mr AbuShaban.
Some clients also have a higher appetite for risk, given the low interest-rate environment that does not provide enough yield for some institutional investors. These clients are keen to invest in illiquid assets, such as private equity and infrastructure.
“What we have seen is a desire for higher returns in what has been a low-return environment specifically in various fixed income or bonds,” he said.
“In this environment, we have seen a de facto increase in the risk that clients are taking in things like illiquid investments, private equity investments, infrastructure and private debt, those kind of investments were higher illiquidity results in incrementally higher returns.”
The Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the largest sovereign wealth funds, said in its 2016 report that has gradually increased its exposure in direct private equity and private credit transactions, mainly in Asian markets and especially in China and India. The authority’s private equity department focused on structured equities owing to “their defensive characteristics.”
The five types of long-term residential visas
Obed Suhail of ServiceMarket, an online home services marketplace, outlines the five types of long-term residential visas:
Investors:
A 10-year residency visa can be obtained by investors who invest Dh10 million, out of which 60 per cent should not be in real estate. It can be a public investment through a deposit or in a business. Those who invest Dh5 million or more in property are eligible for a five-year residency visa. The invested amount should be completely owned by the investors, not loaned, and retained for at least three years.
Entrepreneurs:
A five-year multiple entry visa is available to entrepreneurs with a previous project worth Dh0.5m or those with the approval of an accredited business incubator in the UAE.
Specialists
Expats with specialised talents, including doctors, specialists, scientists, inventors, and creative individuals working in the field of culture and art are eligible for a 10-year visa, given that they have a valid employment contract in one of these fields in the country.
Outstanding students:
A five-year visa will be granted to outstanding students who have a grade of 95 per cent or higher in a secondary school, or those who graduate with a GPA of 3.75 from a university.
Retirees:
Expats who are at least 55 years old can obtain a five-year retirement visa if they invest Dh2m in property, have savings of Dh1m or more, or have a monthly income of at least Dh20,000.
Results:
CSIL 2-star 145cm One Round with Jump-Off
1. Alice Debany Clero (USA) on Amareusa S 38.83 seconds
2. Anikka Sande (NOR) For Cash 2 39.09
3. Georgia Tame (GBR) Cash Up 39.42
4. Nadia Taryam (UAE) Askaria 3 39.63
5. Miriam Schneider (GER) Fidelius G 47.74
ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
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Ukraine
Capital: Kiev
Population: 44.13 million
Armed conflict in Donbass
Russia-backed fighters control territory
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Navdeep Suri, India's Ambassador to the UAE
There has been a longstanding need from the Indian community to have a religious premises where they can practise their beliefs. Currently there is a very, very small temple in Bur Dubai and the community has outgrown this. So this will be a major temple and open to all denominations and a place should reflect India’s diversity.
It fits so well into the UAE’s own commitment to tolerance and pluralism and coming in the year of tolerance gives it that extra dimension.
What we will see on April 20 is the foundation ceremony and we expect a pretty broad cross section of the Indian community to be present, both from the UAE and abroad. The Hindu group that is building the temple will have their holiest leader attending – and we expect very senior representation from the leadership of the UAE.
When the designs were taken to the leadership, there were two clear options. There was a New Jersey model with a rectangular structure with the temple recessed inside so it was not too visible from the outside and another was the Neasden temple in London with the spires in its classical shape. And they said: look we said we wanted a temple so it should look like a temple. So this should be a classical style temple in all its glory.
It is beautifully located - 30 minutes outside of Abu Dhabi and barely 45 minutes to Dubai so it serves the needs of both communities.
This is going to be the big temple where I expect people to come from across the country at major festivals and occasions.
It is hugely important – it will take a couple of years to complete given the scale. It is going to be remarkable and will contribute something not just to the landscape in terms of visual architecture but also to the ethos. Here will be a real representation of UAE’s pluralism.
