UAE's 2020/21 football season to begin on September 3

Arabian Gulf Cup to mark beginning of new campaign

The 2019/20 AGL season has been cancelled. Chris Whiteoak / The National

The UAE's new 2020/21 football season will begin on September 3, the UAE Pro League announced late on Thursday.

The new season will get under way with the Arabian Gulf Cup, followed by the Arabian Gulf League on September 9 and the Arabian Gulf League U21 two days later.

The announcement follows a series of meetings with all stakeholders, including a joint meeting with the UAE Football Association on June 21, attended by representatives of the national teams committee and the competitions committee.

It was followed by a meeting with the professional clubs on Tuesday attended by clubs representatives, and another one with the broadcast right holders.

UAE Pro League board member and head of Technical Committee Hassan Taleb Al Marri praised all stakeholders for their cooperation throughout the discussions. “In setting the calendar, we were keen to have matches scheduled on weekends to ensure maximum levels of viewership and attendances,” said Al Marri.

“The calendar also took into consideration preparing players for national team duty by playing three matchweeks in the league ahead of the joint qualifiers in October 2020, and also scheduled two matchweeks in September prior to the AFC Champions League resumption to help our clubs prepare for the competition.

“We are always striving to have a uniform schedule that serves the best interests of our national teams and clubs. We look forward to a successful season, be it technically or in terms of media, marketing and attendances, and with everyone’s efforts, we can deliver that.”