# Qatar–United Arab Emirates football rivalry

The Qatar–United Arab Emirates football rivalry is an association football rivalry between two nations, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, which involves the football teams of both nations.
The two nations' rivalry has begun since 1972, however, their rivalry had been largely friendly at first and both Qatar and the United Arab Emirates had no issue facing each other. Beginning in 2017, due to the Qatar diplomatic crisis and the downturn of relations, poor political relations have managed to affect football development, causing the rivalry to gain importance.

## History

Qatar and the United Arab Emirates had been largely friendly football rivals when the two first met in 1972, a year after independence from Britain. The two countries first met in the 2nd Arabian Gulf Cup, where Qatar lost to the United Arab Emirates 0–1. Since then, the two nations have met in other 30 occasions. However, only two games happened as friendlies, both ended with Emirati victories.
The rivalry was initially insignificant until 2017 when the United Arab Emirates actively participated in the Qatar diplomatic crisis, by blockading Qatar in air, land and naval travels. Since then, the rivalry has headed into a more hostile fervor; in 2018 AFC U-19 Championship, captain of the U-19 United Arab Emirates refused to shake hand with the Qatari counterpart, Qatar lost the game 1–2 but eventually qualified for the 2019 FIFA U-20 World Cup while the United Arab Emirates was eliminated instead.
Attempt to separate politics from football proved fruitless, when in 2019 AFC Asian Cup, despite effort to reduce tensions, the United Arab Emirates still banned Qataris from entering the country for the tournament. Even Qatari officials were also prohibited from entering the country to inspect the perpetration for the competition. Further, in the semi-finals game between two countries, Prince Nahyan bin Zayed Al Nahyan decided to buy all the remaining tickets of the match to distribute for home fans, as a way to cheer the spirit of the United Arab Emirates, meaning that Qatar had to face an entirely hostile crowd. This had generated controversy as the United Arab Emirates were attempting to politicize the match, given the earlier crisis in the relations between two countries. Despite this, Qatar emerged victoriously with a resounding 4–0 victory on its eventual conquest of the tournament, which was the biggest victory for either of them in their head-to-head history at the time.

## Matches

    Source:
| # | Date | Competition | Venue | Home team | Score | Away team |
| 1 | 17 March 1972 | 2nd Arabian Gulf Cup | Prince Faisal bin Fahd Stadium, Riyadh | United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | Qatar |
| 2 | 29 March 1974 | 3rd Arabian Gulf Cup | Al Kuwait Sports Club Stadium, Kaifan | United Arab Emirates | 1–1 | Qatar |
| 3 | 29 March 1976 | 4th Arabian Gulf Cup | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 3–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 4 | 29 March 1979 | 5th Arabian Gulf Cup | Al-Shaab Stadium, Baghdad | Qatar | 1–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 5 | 17 September 1980 | 1980 AFC Asian Cup | Sabah Al Salem Stadium, Kuwait City | Qatar | 2–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 6 | 19 March 1982 | 6th Arabian Gulf Cup | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 6–0 | Qatar |
| 7 | 12 March 1984 | 7th Arabian Gulf Cup | Royal Oman Police Stadium, Muscat | United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | Qatar |
| 8 | 7 April 1984 | 8th Arabian Gulf Cup | Bahrain National Stadium, Manama | Qatar | 3–2 | United Arab Emirates |
| 9 | 7 April 1988 | 9th Arabian Gulf Cup | King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh | Qatar | 2–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 10 | 7 April 1988 | 1988 AFC Asian Cup | Suheim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 2–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 11 | 24 October 1989 | 1990 FIFA World Cup Qualification | National Stadium, Singapore | Qatar | 1–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 12 | 27 February 1990 | 10th Arabian Gulf Cup | Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium, Kuwait City | Qatar | 0–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 13 | 14 May 1992 | Friendly | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 1–0 | Qatar |
| 14 | 6 December 1992 | 11th Arabian Gulf Cup | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 1–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 15 | 9 October 1994 | 1994 Asian Games | Bingo Stadium, Onomichi | United Arab Emirates | 2–2 | Qatar |
| 16 | 3 November 1994 | 12th Arabian Gulf Cup | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 2–0 | Qatar |
| 17 | 16 October 1996 | 13th Arabian Gulf Cup | Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex, Muscat | United Arab Emirates | 0–1 | Qatar |
| 18 | 29 September 1998 | 1998 Arab Nations Cup | Jassim bin Hamad Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 2–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 19 | 5 November 1998 | 14th Arabian Gulf Cup | Bahrain National Stadium, Manama | Qatar | 0–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 20 | 31 August 2001 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification | Zayed Sports City Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 0–2 | Qatar |
| 21 | 4 October 2001 | 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 1–2 | United Arab Emirates |
| 22 | 20 January 2002 | 15th Arabian Gulf Cup | King Fahd International Stadium, Riyadh | Qatar | 2–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 23 | 3 January 2004 | 16th Arabian Gulf Cup | Al-Sadaqua Walsalam Stadium, Kuwait City | Qatar | 0–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 24 | 10 December 2004 | 17th Arabian Gulf Cup | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 2–2 | United Arab Emirates |
| 25 | 16 July 2007 | 2007 AFC Asian Cup | Quân khu 7 Stadium, Ho Chi Minh City | Qatar | 1–2 | United Arab Emirates |
| 26 | 8 January 2009 | 19th Arabian Gulf Cup | Royal Oman Police Stadium, Muscat | Qatar | 0–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 27 | 25 August 2011 | Friendly | Tahnoun bin Mohammed Stadium, Al Ain | United Arab Emirates | 3–1 | Qatar |
| 28 | 25 August 2013 | 21st Arabian Gulf Cup | Khalifa Sports City Stadium, Isa Town | United Arab Emirates | 3–1 | Qatar |
| 29 | 11 January 2015 | 2015 AFC Asian Cup | Canberra Stadium, Canberra | United Arab Emirates | 4–1 | Qatar |
| 30 | 29 January 2019 | 2019 AFC Asian Cup | Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 0–4 | Qatar |
| 31 | 2 December 2019 | 24th Arabian Gulf Cup | Khalifa International Stadium, Doha | Qatar | 4–2 | United Arab Emirates |
| 32 | 10 December 2021 | 2021 FIFA Arab Cup | Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor | Qatar | 5–0 | United Arab Emirates |
| 33 | 13 January 2023 | 25th Arabian Gulf Cup | Al-Minaa Olympic Stadium, Basra | Qatar | 1–1 | United Arab Emirates |
| 34 | 5 September 2024 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | Ahmad bin Ali Stadium, Al Rayyan | Qatar | 1–3 | United Arab Emirates |
| 35 | 19 November 2024 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification | Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi | United Arab Emirates | 5–0 | Qatar |
| 36 | 21 December 2024 | 26th Arabian Gulf Cup | Sulaibikhat Stadium, Sulaibikhat | United Arab Emirates | 1–1 | Qatar |

## Overall summary

    As of 21 December 2024
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Best win |
| United Arab Emirates | 36 | 13 | 10 | 14 | 50 | 48 | +2 | 6–0 |
| Qatar | 36 | 14 | 10 | 13 | 48 | 50 | –2 | 5–0 |
| Matches held in United Arab Emirates | 7 |
| Matches held in neutral venue | 20 |
| Matches held in Qatar | 9 |
| Total matches | 36 |

## Top scorers

The bold indicates that the player is still active
| Rank | Player | Goals |
| 1 | Ali Mabkhout | 5 |
| 1 | Fabio Lima | 5 |
| 2 | Ahmed Khalil | 4 |
| 3 | Adnan Al Talyani | 3 |
| 3 | Mohammed Salem Al-Enazi | 3 |
| 3 | Almoez Ali | 3 |
| 3 | Boualem Khoukhi | 3 |
| 4 | Yahya Al-Ghassani | 2 |
| 4 | Hassan Al-Haydos | 2 |
| 4 | Zuhair Bakheet | 2 |
| 5 | various players | 1 |