Saudi Arabia will look to end a run of five successive final defeats when they face United Arab Emirates in the Gulf Cup 27 final at Al-Inma Stadium in Jeddah on Tuesday.
The Green Falcons reached the final after beating Qatar on penalties in Saturday’s semi-final. The match finished goalless after 90 minutes and extra time before Saudi Arabia secured a place in the tournament’s showpiece.
Their meeting with United Arab Emirates offers Saudi Arabia the chance to win their first trophy in 23 years. Their most recent success came in the same competition, when they lifted the Arabian Gulf Cup in 2003.
Since then, Saudi Arabia have reached five finals across the AFC Asian Cup and the Arabian Gulf Cup but have failed to win any of them.
Their first defeat in that sequence came at the 2007 AFC Asian Cup. Saudi Arabia had been regarded as strong favourites in the final but were beaten 1-0 by Iraq.
The team then lost four Arabian Gulf Cup finals.
At Gulf Cup 19 in 2009, Saudi Arabia were beaten by Oman on penalties after the final ended level. Two years later, at Gulf Cup 20 in 2011, they suffered another final defeat, losing 1-0 to Kuwait after extra time.
Saudi Arabia returned to the final at Gulf Cup 22 in 2014, only to lose 2-1 to Qatar in normal time.
Their most recent defeat came at Gulf Cup 24 in 2019, when Bahrain won the final 1-0.
That record has created added pressure ahead of Tuesday’s match, with Saudi Arabia attempting to prevent another final disappointment against a United Arab Emirates side that has impressed during the current edition of the tournament.
A victory at Al-Inma Stadium would not only secure Gulf Cup 27 but also bring an end to Saudi Arabia’s long wait for silverware and their sequence of five losses in major finals.
