UAE Pro League holds 2025-26 season draw for Adnoc Pro League, ADIB Cup
The draw ceremony for the 2025–26 season took place in the presence of distinguished representatives from clubs, sponsors, and various media outlets, hosted by Adnoc – the official sponsor of the Adnoc Pro League.
Adnoc is a global leader in energy production across all types, a trusted and responsible provider of low-emission energy, and a national giant whose iconic brand has become a symbol of excellence across various sectors.
The ceremony was attended by Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, the UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, Managing Director and CEO of Adnoc and its Group of Companies, as well as Abdulla Nasser Al Jneibi, Chairman of the UAE Pro League and First Vice President of the UAE Football Association; Saif Al Falahi, Group Business Support and Special Tasks Director at ADNOC; Eng. Bader Saeed Al Lamki, CEO of ADNOC Distribution; and Ahmed Al Mubarak, Head of Commercial Real Estate and Corporate Finance at ADIB.
The 2025-26 draw was presented by media personalities Yousef Saleh and Khaled Bayoumi.
At the same time, the new season's draw event also featured the draw for the sixth season of the eUAE Pro League Championship, reflecting the League's belief in the importance of eSports among the target generations.
The UAE Pro League recognizes the growing global value of e- gaming and its continuous rise and is keen to be part of this global ecosystem that is actively investing in this thriving industry.
It also saw the continued adoption of the smart electronic draw system, implemented since the 2021–2022 season in the Adnoc Pro League, aligns with the UAE Pro League's 2020–2030 strategy aimed at advancing all aspects of professional competitions.
It also reflects the UAE Government's smart vision through the use of artificial intelligence (AI) technology via the OpenAI program, in line with the UAE Artificial Intelligence Strategy 2031.
The system takes into account several key factors, including, balancing high-profile matches, ensuring no more than two matches are held in the same city during a single matchweek, ensuring an equitable home-and-away distribution (six home matches and seven away, or vice versa), and accommodating clubs' participation in foreign competitions.
This season, the UAE Pro League implemented a round-by-round draw system, in line with international best practices adopted in top leagues such as the English Premier League, Serie A, and the Bundesliga.
The goal is to maximize technical excitement, competitive balance, and deliver more high-profile, fan-focused matches.
The smart draw mechanism was guided by a set of key criteria, including; upholding sporting integrity, distributing matches based on the 2024–2025 season standings, balancing major and high-attendance fixtures, accounting for clubs' external commitments, coordinating match schedules within the same emirate, and ensuring that no more than two matches are played in the same city on the same day during the same matchweek.
The ADIB Cup draw resulted in strong clashes in the first round. In path one, Al Nasr face Al Bataeh, with the winner playing Shabab Al Ahli.
Meanwhile, the winner of Sharjah versus Dibba will face the winner of Al Ain versus Khorfakkan.
In Path 2, reigning champions Al Jazira will meet the winner of Al Wasl versus Al Dhafra. The winner of Al Wahda versus Ajman will face the winner of Bani Yas versus Khorfakkan.
The Adnoc Pro League draw introduced an unprecedented system with separate draws for each round.
The opening round will not feature major high-profile clashes: Shabab Al Ahli will play Al Dhafra, Ajman face Al Wahda, Dibba take on Sharjah, Al Ain meet Al Bataeh, Kalba clash against Al Nasr, Khorfakkan play Al Jazira, and Al Wasl face off Bani Yas.
Major clashes begin in matchweek two, with Shabab Al Ahli facing Al Wahda and Sharjah playing Al Jazira.
In matchweek three, Al Wasl will play Al Ain and Al Jazira will face Al Nasr. Matchweek four features Al Nasr vs. Shabab Al Ahli, while matchweek five hosts three major matches: Shabab Al Ahli vs. Al Ain, Al Jazira vs. Al Wahda, and Al Wasl vs. Sharjah.
The 'Dubai Derby' between Al Wasl and Al Nasr will be played in matchweek six.
In the second half of the league, the first matchweek of this half will see Al Wahda play Dibba, Al Dhafra vs. Sharjah, Ajman vs. Shabab Al Ahli, Al Nasr vs. Bani Yas, Al Bataeh vs. Al Jazira, Kalba vs. Al Ain and Al Wasl vs. Khorfakkan.
The draw for the eUAE Pro League Championship produced strong matches in two groups.
Group A includes Bani Yas, Al Bataeh, Sharjah, Kalba, Ajman, Dibba, and Al Jazira. Group B includes Khorfakkan, Al Wasl, Al Ain, Al Wahda, Shabab Al Ahli, Al Nasr, and Al Dhafra.
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