Draw for third Gulf Champions League kicks off today for 2026-2027 season

Participating clubs in the third edition of the Gulf Champions League for the 2026-2027 season are awaiting the official group stage draw, which will be held today, Monday, via video conference.

The group stage will follow a double round-robin format, home and away, starting from October 13, 2026, with 12 clubs representing the national member associations.

The draw mechanism will divide the 12 participating clubs into four pots, each containing three teams, based on the Asian Football Confederation’s club rankings for the 2026-2027 season.

Pot one includes Saudi clubs Al-Ettifaq and Neom, along with Al-Nasr from the UAE. Pot two features Ajman from the UAE, and Al-Duhail and Qatar SC from Qatar. Pot three consists of Erbil and Al-Zawraa from Iraq, and Al-Shabab from Oman. Pot four includes Al-Riffa from Bahrain, Kazma from Kuwait, and Shabab Hadramout from Yemen.

According to the competition’s regulations, the 12 teams will be split into three groups of four, with no two clubs from the same country placed in the same group.

The top two teams from each group, along with the two best third-placed teams, will advance to the quarterfinals, which will be played over two legs, home and away.

The group stage is set to conclude on February 17, 2027. The quarterfinals will take place from March 2 to 17, 2027, while the semifinals and final will be held between April 23 and 30, 2027.