Al Wahda Football Club (Arabic: نادي الوحدة لكرة القدم, romanized: al-waḥda, lit.'Union') is an Emirati professional football club based in Abu Dhabi, that competes in the UAE Pro League.[2] The club was founded in 1974 and plays its home games at the Al Nahyan Stadium. The club's colours are maroon, navy blue and white.

Quick Facts Full name, Founded ...
Al Wahda FC
نادي الوحـدة لكرة القدم
Full nameAl Wahda Football Club
FoundedJune 3, 1984; 40 years ago (1984-06-03)
GroundAl Nahyan Stadium
Capacity15,894[1]
OwnerDiab Bin Zayed Al Nahyan
ChairmanRashid Bin Diab Al Nahyan
ManagerRonny Deila
LeagueUAE Pro League
2023–24UAE Pro League, 5th
Websitehttp://www.alwahda-sc.com
Current season
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History

Foundation

The first team created in Abu Dhabi was Al-Ahli in 1966, followed respectively by Al-Ittihad in 1968, Al-Falah and Al-Wahda in 1969. In 1974, a decision was made by the Minister of youth and sport to create Abu Dhabi SC by merging Al-Ittihad and Al-Wahda on 13 March 1974, and to create Al-Emirates SC by merging Al-Ahli and Al-Falah on 3 June 1974. In 1984, Abu Dhabi SC and Al-Emirates SC merged to create Al-Wahda FC.

Modern era

In 1999, Al Wahda won their maiden UAE League title with 8 points ahead of their rivals Al Ain. In 2018, Al Wahda changed its official logo as part of a new club redesign.

Honours

Leagues

UAE Pro League: 4

UAE Division One: 2

  • Champions: 1976–77, 1984–85

Cups

UAE President's Cup: 2

UAE Federation Cup: 3

  • Champions: 1986, 1995, 2001

UAE League Cup: 3

  • Champions: 2015–16, 2017–18, 2023–24

UAE Super Cup: 4

Home stadium

Thumb
An outer view of the Al Nahyan Stadium

The Al-Nahyan Stadium is the home of Al Wahda.[4] It has 15,000 seats and located only three kilometers from the downtown at the heart of Abu Dhabi City.

Performance in AFC competitions

Thumb
Al Wahda players (right) during an AFC Champions League match against FC Goa at the Fatorda Stadium in 2021

Al Wahda has been qualifying for Asian competitions regularly since the 1998–99 Asian Cup Winners' Cup, they've been qualifying for the AFC Champions League regularly by winning the President's Cup or consistently finishing near the top in the league.

More information Asian Club Championship / AFC Champions League, Season ...
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2004: Quarter-finals
2006: Group stage
2007: Semi-finals
2008: Group stage
2010: Group stage
2011: Group stage
2015: Play-offs
2017: Group stage
2018: Group stage
2019: Round of 16
2020: Withdrew
2021: Quarter-finals
1999–2000: First round
2001–02: Group stage (Top 8)
1998–99: First round
2000–01: First round

Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

More information No., Pos. ...
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Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

More information No., Pos. ...
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Coaching staff

More information Position, Name ...
Position Name
Manager Norway Ronny Deila
Assistant Manager Scotland Kenny Miller
England Liam weeks
Goalkeeper Coach United Arab Emirates Abdullslam Jumaa
Fitness Coach Italy Marco Vego
Tunisia Monsef Bin Al-shikh
Club Doctor Tunisia Waleed Al-Shikh
Medical Therapist Serbia Ninad Martino
Massage Therapist Croatia Bojo Sinkovic
Serbia Vlafmir Harfman
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Managerial history

* Served as caretaker coach.

More information Name, Nat. ...
Name Nat. From To Ref.
Helmy Toulan Egypt 1979 1984
Heshmat Mohajerani Iran 1984 1986
Slobodan Halilović Federal Republic of Yugoslavia 1991 1992
Mahmoud El-Gohary Egypt 1995 1996
Jo Bonfrère Netherlands 1998 1999
Ruud Krol Netherlands 1999 1999
Dimitri Davidovic Belgium 1999 2000
Rinus Israël Netherlands 2000 2001
Jo Bonfrère Netherlands 2001 2002
Cemşir Muratoğlu Turkey 2002 2003
Rolf Fringer Austria 14 March 2003 30 June 2003
Rolland Courbis France 1 July 2003 30 November 2003
Rinus Israël Netherlands 1 December 2003 30 June 2004
Ahmad Abdel-Halim Egypt 2004 2005
Reiner Hollmann Germany 1 July 2005 3 April 2006
Richard Tardy France 2006 4 August 2006
Horst Köppel Germany 5 August 2006 11 October 2006 [5]
Jo Bonfrère Netherlands 13 December 2007 10 December 2008
Josef Hickersberger Austria 10 December 2008 1 June 2010
László Bölöni Romania 29 May 2010 2 September 2010 [6]
Tite Brazil 31 August 2010 19 October 2010
Josef Hickersberger Austria 22 October 2010 30 June 2012
Branko Ivanković Croatia 20 May 2012 28 April 2013
Josef Hickersberger Austria 28 April 2013 15 July 2013
Karel Jarolím Czech Republic 15 July 2013 9 November 2013
José Peseiro Portugal 11 November 2013 11 January 2015
Sami Al-Jaber Saudi Arabia 11 January 2015 19 May 2015
Javier Aguirre Mexico 18 June 2015 20 May 2017 [7]
Laurențiu Reghecampf Romania 3 July 2017 25 November 2018
Henk ten Cate Netherlands 7 December 2018 26 May 2019
Maurice Steijn Netherlands 9 June 2019 17 October 2019
Manuel Jiménez Spain 17 October 2019 18 July 2020 [8]
Mark Wotte Netherlands 18 July 2020 8 September 2020
Vuk Rasovic Serbia 8 September 2020 12 March 2021 [9]
Henk ten Cate Netherlands 13 March 2021 25 October 2021
Grégory Dufrennes France 26 October 2021 3 June 2022
Carlos Carvalhal Portugal 1 July 2022 2 October 2022 [10]
Manuel Jiménez Spain 5 October 2022 12 March 2023
Arno Buitenweg* Netherlands 13 March 2023 17 June 2023
Pitso Mosimane South Africa 18 June 2023 10 November 2023 [11]
Arno Buitenweg* Netherlands 10 November 2023 5 January 2024
Goran Tufegdžić Serbia 5 January 2024 Present
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Pro-League record

More information Season, Lvl. ...
Season Lvl. Tms. Pos. President's Cup League Cup
2008–09 1 12 4th Semi-Finals Runner-ups
2009–10 1 12 1st Semi-Finals Semi-Finals
2010–11 1 12 5th Runner-ups Semi-Finals
2011–12 1 12 6th Semi-Finals First Round
2012–13 1 14 7th Semi-Finals Semi-Finals
2013–14 1 14 2nd Quarter-Finals First Round
2014–15 1 14 4th Round of 16 First Round
2015–16 1 14 3rd Round of 16 Champions
2016–17 1 14 5th Champions First Round
2017–18 1 12 2nd Semi-Finals Champions
2018–19 1 14 3rd Round of 16 Runner-ups
2019–20a 1 14 5th Round of 16 Quarter-Finals
2020–21 1 14 7th Round of 16 First Round
2021–22 1 14 3rd Runner-ups Semi-Finals
2022–23 1 14 3rd Preliminary Round Quarter-Finals
2023–24 1 14 5th Round of 16 Champions
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Notes^ 2019–20 UAE football season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates.

Key

  • Pos. = Position
  • Tms. = Number of teams
  • Lvl. = League

See also

References

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