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The Draw of the quartet tournament

 

The draw of the quartet tournament qualifying to the Etisalat Pro League for the 2012-2013 season which was drawn last evening at the UAE Football Association headquarters has resulted in Sharjah taking on Al Dhafra, Emirates facing Al Shaab in the first round; Al Shaab meet Sharjah and Al Dhafra tackle it out against Emirates in the second round, and the tournament will be concluded when Sharjah face Emirates and Al Shaab play Al Dhafra in the third round.

The draw ceremony was attended by Mohammed Abdul Aziz member of the Football Association Board of Directors, Chairman of the Competitions Committee, Yahya Al Shamsi, CEO of Emirates Club, Ahmed Al Junaibi manager of Sharjah Club football team, Khalifa Al Tunaiji vice president of Al Dhafra Club, and Omran Al Nuaimi, Member of Al Shaab Club Board of Directors.

The UAE Football Association has earlier announced during its last meeting to increase the number of the Etisalat Pro League clubs for the new 2012-2013 season to 14 teams instead of 12 which was the case in the latest seasons.

This increase should be applied from the new season 2012-2013 on condition that a four-team play-off tournament should be held before the kick-off of the upcoming season including Sharjah and Emirates who were relegated this season, Al Shaab and Al Dhafra who finished in the third and fourth positions in the first division league, to determine the two additional teams. 

The Board of Directors has entrusted to the competitions committee to determine the mechanism, regulations and conditions of the Quartet tournament so that a recommendation should be submitted to the council for accreditation.

In response to the questions put forward by the representatives of the clubs on the date and venue of the tournament, Mohammed Abdul Aziz, member of the Football Association Board of Directors, said that coordination regarding this issue is currently going on with the Professional League Committee so as to avoid inconsistency with the start of the Etisalat Cup.

Regarding the stadiums for the tournament matches, Abdul Aziz noted that it will be decided conclusively during the committee meeting considering neutral stadiums so that the geographic location will be convincing for all teams. He said that tournament regulations will be distributed to the clubs later including all conditions.

It is worth mentioning that the tournament will be held over 11 days where there will be an interval of up to four days between one round and the other.