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Al Shorta will have to dust off rust when they host Al Sadd SC in their opening AFC Champions League Elite 2025/26 tie Monday.Al Shorta have yet to kick off their Iraqi domestic campaign while reigning Qatar champions Al Sadd will have the benefit of having already played several competitive matches.Both sides endured contrasting fortunes on the continental stage last season - Al Shorta's campaign ended in the League Stage while Al Sadd advanced to the quarter-finals."I'm happy to be in Baghdad, and I hope the match will be enjoyable for the fans," Al Sadd coach Felix Sanchez said Sunday. "We realize the importance of the tournament with its new format."What's most important now is for the players to be in the best possible condition for the match," he added.Al Sadd defender Tarqe Salman said Sunday: "A strong and somewhat a difficult match awaits us against the Shorta. Our loss against Al Shahaniya was a setback (in QSL), but we are capable of getting back on the right track."It will be a first meeting between the sides and the two will be determined to start on the front foot with Al Shorta having never won their opening AFC Champions League match while 2011 champions Al Sadd are winless in their last six curtain raisers.Al Shorta, in fact, only managed a single victory as they finished 11th in the League Stage last season.Al Sadd will be confident of taking the points, having ended a three-season wait by advancing to the knockout stage last season and the mercurial Akram Afif - who was involved in goals in each of his last five AFC Champions League Elite matches - will be expected to lead their charge.Sharjah FC (UAE) v Al Gharafa SCSharjah FC and Al Gharafa SC will target an opening day win when they square off in the AFC Champions League Elite 2025/26 Monday.UAE's Sharjah will be aiming to maintain their momentum from their AFC Champions League Two 2024/25 triumph while Qatar's Al Gharafa will be determined to avoid last season's league stage exit.The sides have kicked off their respective domestic forms relatively well, with Sharjah in the upper half of the standings.Al Gharafa defeated Al Sailiya 2-0 on Friday to sit third in the Qatar Stars League standings and will look forward to a first meeting with Sharjah.The UAE side, who were held 2-2 by Khor Fakkan in their league tie on Friday, will be determined to maximise home ground advantage, with Sharjah having a poor record against teams from Qatar on the continental stage - having only won once in six previous encounters.Al Gharafa will be keen to avoid last season's troubles on the continental stage, where they won only two of their matches to finish 10th in the standings.

President of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and Senior Vice-President of the FIFA Council Sheikh Salman bin Ebrahim Al Khalifa expressed his full solidarity with the State of Qatar following the brutal aggression on Doha on Tuesday.In his remarks to Qatar News Agency (QNA), the AFC President said that the Asian football family stands with the State of Qatar, praising the country's position on the international map and its noble roles in establishing the values of love and peace around the world, asking Allah to protect Qatar and its people, to perpetuate the blessings of security and stability, and to always remain an oasis of security, peace, and prosperity.

Qatar notched their second win after edging India 2-1 in Group H of the AFC U-23 Asian Cup 2026 qualifiers Saturday. India made a promising start and looked dangerous every time they went forward but it was Qatar who took the lead in the 18th minute.Al Hashmi al-Hussain rose highest to nod home his header which looped over India keeper Sahil Poonia and into the back of the net. The second half saw India push more bodies forward and they levelled the score in the 52nd minute after Muhammad Suhail converted Mohammed Sanan’s cross with a headed finish.However, India suffered a blow in the 65th minute when Pramveer Singh was sent off for picking up his second yellow card after bringing down Noureldin Ibrahim inside the box.Jassem al-Sharshani made no mistake from the spot to seal Qatar the victory. Qatar face Bahrain in their final fixture on Tuesday with India taking on Brunei.In another Group H match, Bahrain bounced back from their opening day loss against India to hand Brunei a 10-0 thrashing to reignite the nation’s hopes.

Qatar romped to a 13-0 win over Brunei in their Group H clash at the AFC U23 Asian Cup Saudi Arabia 2026 Qualifiers at the Abdullah Bin Khalifa Stadium Wednesday.Qatar’s opening goal came in the fourth minute through Moustafa Asar and Jassem al-Sharshani claiming their second two minutes later.Mubarak Hamza converted a penalty for their third in the 11th minute as the hosts scored their seventh in the 33rd minute through Abdulaziz Hassan as the West Asian side proceeded to race to a 7-0 lead at the interval.Three more goals came within the span of four minutes in the second half, with Asar claiming his hat-trick in the 54th, Noureldan Ibrahim adding another two minutes later and then Asar again in the 57th minute.Marawan Brimil put his name on the scoresheet in the 70th and 83rd minutes before Ibrahim wrapped proceedings with his brace in the fifth minute of stoppage time.In the other Group H clash, India eked out a 2-0 win over Bahrain at the Suheim Bin Hamad Stadium.A first half strike by Muhammad Suhail and another in the dying minutes by Shivaldo Singh was enough to give India victory over Bahrain in their group opener.Both sides were evenly matched in the first half an hour before India broke the deadlock in the 31st minute through Suhail, who plays for Indian Super League side Punjab FC.While Bahrain had an edge in possession in the second half, they failed to find the equaliser, managing only three shots at target.They lost any chance of gaining a point when India doubled their lead five minutes into stoppage time with a goal from Singh.Bahrain will play Brunei on Saturday.