Athletes and fans said that there are four main reasons that will push the public to attend in large numbers and fill the stands, during the anticipated appearance of the national football team in the third and decisive round of the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, indicating that these reasons are represented in the importance of the next stage and the public’s feeling that the team is on the verge of achieving a historic achievement by qualifying for the next World Cup, in addition to the importance of the strong appearance of the team and achieving a positive result in its first match against its Qatari counterpart, in addition to the necessary facilities provided by the Football Association to the public to be able to attend the matches, including its recent announcement of providing 2,000 free tickets for the public during the national team’s anticipated match against Qatar, and the fourth reason is that the national team’s match against Iran will be held at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain, which the public described as a suitable stadium, and that its selection will encourage the public to attend in large numbers, noting that the absence of the public from attending in large numbers in the stands during the past period was due to the ease of the matches that the national team played in the second round of these qualifiers, during which it topped its group with 16 points, indicating that the ceiling of ambition has become high, which is qualification White for the World Cup.
They told Al-Emarat Al-Youm: “The national team has qualified with merit for the final round of these qualifiers, and its chances are great to compete strongly to win the qualification card for the 2026 World Cup, so matters require everyone to stand firmly behind (Al-Abyad).”
The national team coach, the Portuguese Paulo Bento, said in previous press statements that he wanted to see the stands filled with fans during the national team’s matches, as happens with clubs, considering it important to support the national team.
The national team launched an internal camp on Saadiyat Island in Abu Dhabi yesterday, and will conduct its daily training at the New York University stadium. It is worth noting that the Whites are playing in Group One, which also includes Qatar, Iran, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and North Korea.
The national team’s technical staff announced the list of players selected to participate in the third stage of the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, the day before yesterday. The national team will meet its Qatari counterpart on September 5 in Qatar, while it will face the Iranian national team on the 10th of the same month at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain.
The list included 30 players, including four new faces: Adly Mohamed, goalkeeper for Southampton, Kwame Kido, defender for Al Ain, Mackenzie Hunt, midfielder for Fleetwood, and Junior Ndaye, striker for Montpellier.
In goalkeeping, Khaled Issa, Khaled Tawhid, and Ali Khaseif were chosen.
In defence: Khaled Al Hashemi, Mohammed Al Attas, Khalifa Al Hammadi, Zayed Sultan, Khaled Al Dhanhani, Abdullah Idris, Abdulrahman Saleh, and Khamis Al Mansouri.
In the middle: Ali Salmeen, Yahya Nader, Mohammed Abbas, Majed Rashid, Abdullah Hamad, Tahnoon Al Zaabi, Essam Fayez, Yahya Al Ghassani, Harb Abdullah, Ali Saleh, Fabio De Lima, and Fahad Bader.
In the attack: Sultan Adel, Caio Canedo, and Mohamed Juma.
Strong performance will motivate the audience.
Sports commentator and technical analyst Ali Hamid attributed the lack of large numbers of fans in the stands during the past period, specifically in the second round of the World Cup qualifiers, to “the ease of the matches that the team played,” considering that the upcoming period is different from previous ones because “the ceiling of ambition is high, which is the qualification of the Whites for the next World Cup finals.”
He added: “The fans will not fail to support the national team, and there is a lot of previous evidence in this regard.”
Ali Hamid believes that if the team performs strongly in its upcoming match against Qatar, which will be held in Doha, this will push the fans to be present in force to support the team in its second match against Iran at Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium in Al Ain.
Facilities provided to the public
Media personality and sports analyst Adel Al Hammadi stressed the importance of the team’s strong performance in its first match against Qatar, and its return from Doha with a positive result, which is an important factor in attracting fans to the stands in the second match against Iran. He also stressed the importance of the facilities provided by the Football Association to the fans and motivating them to attend the stands in large numbers, in addition to the importance of giving this match and the next stage in the team’s journey great media attention and momentum, given the importance of the stage the team has reached in the qualifiers, considering that providing all these things will motivate the fans to attend the stands in large numbers.
Adel Al Hammadi pointed out the importance of supporting the national team at this stage, which he described as the most important in the World Cup qualifiers.
Stands full of fans
For his part, the Chairman of the Bani Yas Club Fans Council, Harez Al-Menhali, confirmed that the national team is currently on the threshold of an important stage in the decisive round of the World Cup qualifiers, as it aspires to reach the next World Cup and repeat its achievement of 1990 by qualifying for the World Cup, stressing his great confidence in the ability of the “Whites” to compete in the first group, but on the condition that there is strong support from the fans behind their team, noting that the team is in dire need of strong public support to support it and spread enthusiasm among the players, hoping to see the stands filled with fans during the team’s matches.
Al-Menhali stressed the importance of mobilizing club fans from all categories, especially youth, to support the national team in the coming period.
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