Gulf Cup 2026 results: The final round of group games in the Gulf Cup saw UAE and Qatar fight for the top spot, and Bahrain play Yemen, with both sides seeking a first win.
UAE 1-1 Qatar
UAE fought back to draw with Qatar to seal the top spot in Group B in the Gulf Cup. The match at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium saw both teams make changes to their starting XI, having already secured a semi-final berth.
UAE started the game on the front and saw Luan Pereira head over the bar from an early free-kick. Qatar goalkeeper Mahmoud Abunada then pushed away a free-kick from Fabio Lima to keep things level. The Maroons finally settled into the game and took the lead in the 33rd minute.
Jassim Gaber’s swirling cross from the right found Almoez Ali, who poked in a finish past Hamad Al-Meqabaali. Al-Abyad refused to buckle and went close to finding an equalizer.
They found the leveller in first half stoppage time through Ali Saleh. A cross from the right side was partially cleared by Abdulaziz Hatem, and the ball fell for Saleh just outside the box. The Al-Wasl winger struck a neat shot to find the bottom-left corner and make it 1-1.
Zlatko Dalic’s side put the Asian champions under pressure in the second half, but were kept at bay by Qatar goalkeeper Mahmud Abunada. Despite their ascendancy, UAE failed to find a winner, but still finished top of the group ahead of Qatar.
They will now face Oman in the semi-finals, while Julen Lopetegui will know his side have to improve a lot when they take on Saudi Arabia in the other last four clash.
Bahrain 2-5 Yemen
Defending Gulf Cup champions Bahrain crashed out of the tournament with a 5-2 defeat at the hands of Yemen. Having lost their first two games without scoring a goal, the final match against Yemen represented a chance for Bahrain to sign off on a winning note.
A miscalculated backpass gifted Bahrain the opener in the seventh minute. Yemen goalkeeper Mohammed Aman Khairalah tried to close in, but Ali Al Dosari dribbled past him to place the ball into the empty net.
But Yemen found the equalizer in the 18th minute through Naseer Mohammedoh. A long ball found the winger, who took a touch before turning around to leave his marker on the floor and finishing past Bahrain goalkeeper Mohammed Abdelrahim. This goal opened the floodgates for Al-Yaman as-Sa’eed.
The team scored three goals in a 13-minute display to leave their opponents stunned. Yemen captain Abdulwasea Al Matari put his side ahead with a glancing header from a corner in the 31st minute, and nine minutes later they went further ahead.
A sharp Yemen move saw 18-year-old winger Adel Abbas Qasem skip past the Bahrain defence on the right side and deliver a ball across the goal, which was slid into the net by left-back Rami Al-Wasmani. Noureddine Ould Ali’s side added a fourth just before the interval.
Qasem received the ball just inside the penalty area, and he held his composure to beat Abdelrahim with a left-footed strike.
Bahrain did fight back in the second half and got a goal back in the 67th minute. Mohamed Marhoon played a deft pass to Ali Madan in the box, and he took a touch before firing a finish past Aman Khairalah. But Yemen would have the last laugh.
In the fifth minute of stoppage time, Anis Al-Maari ran past the Bahrain defence and played a ball across for Al-Wasmani to complete his brace and his side’s fifth goal of the game.
Bahrain will have a lot to ponder following their dismal campaign. While the results against UAE and Qatar were disappointing, the shock defeat to Yemen, a team ranked 53 places below them in the FIFA World Rankings, will damage their reputation. For Yemen, this is their biggest win in Gulf Cup history.
Not many people gave them a chance to salvage something from this group, but after an opening day thrashing at the hands of UAE, they have held themselves well. They lost narrowly to Qatar in their second game and have now produced a result that will live long in the memory of Yemeni football fans.
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