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AFC to Visit the UAE in October for Champions League Inspection

 

The UAE Football League (UFL) confirmed today that a special delegation from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) will visit the UAE from October 6-14, 2011 in order to inspect facilities of the UAE's professional clubs.

The aim of the visit is to ensure that all clubs meet AFC regulations across various criteria including stadium facilities, spectator figures, operational matters and marketing activities. Meeting these criteria is vital in order to secure the UAE's participation in the AFC Champions League (ACL) competition with the current number of associated slots.

Currently the UAE holds three and a half spots in the ACL, meaning the top two teams from the Etisalat Pro-League and the winner of H.H. President's Cup automatically qualify for the competition. A fourth UAE team (the third placed team from the Etisalat Pro-League) then has the opportunity to qualify for the competition through a series of play-off matches.

The results of the AFC inspection visit in October will help determine the number of spots the UAE has in the ACL competition in 2012.

"Following the AFC's last inspection in September 2010 they were happy with the professional standards being applied across UAE clubs, however there were some areas that needed improvement," said Carlo Nohra, CEO, UFL.

"We will be working with the clubs to deliver these improvements and therefore look forward to welcoming the AFC delegation in October to demonstrate these advancements."