Abu Dhabi Classico

Last updated
Abu Dhabi Classico
Other namesAl Classico
Location Abu Dhabi
Teams Al Ain
Al Wahda
First meeting8 November 1985 [1]
Football League
Al Ain 3–3 Al Wahda
Latest meeting20 May 2024
Pro League
Al Wahda 0–2 Al Ain
Stadiums Hazza bin Zayed (Al Ain)
Al Nahyan (Al Wahda)
Statistics
Meetings total110 (official matches)
Most wins Al Ain (52)
Top scorerMajid Al Owais (11)

The Abu Dhabi Classico or the Al Classico is the rivalry between Al Ain and Al Wahda. The rivalry was first contested around the mid 1980s and has been the biggest derby in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Al Ain is from the city of Al Ain in the Eastern region of the emirate while Al Wahda is from the city of Abu Dhabi in the Central region. Both clubs are among the most successful teams in the UAE with Al Ain having 36 honours while Al Wahda has 16 honours.

Contents

History

The rivalry between the two teams stems from the fact that they are the most successful clubs in Emirate of Abu Dhabi. Al Ain established themselves as a top club in Abu Dhabi by winning two Abu Dhabi championships in 1974 and 1975 and later a top club in the country when they won the League title in 1977. Al Wahda's success was limited during that time. The rivalry sparked when the two clubs started exchanging titles around 1997 to 2005, Al Wahda won three titles while Al Ain won five, three out of those eight seasons had both clubs finish at the top two. The 2004–05 season was one the most significant time as Al Wahda won the league title while Al Ain won the president's cup with a 3–1 score line at extra time. Even though Al Ain would win five more league titles while Al Wahda only won once, matches between the two continue to spark major controversies and the two clubs rarely sign players and managers that have represented the other club to this day. During a fixture between the two in March 2022, fighting broke out between fans of both clubs after Al Ain won 1–0. Abu Dhabi police had to arrest several football fans during the incident. [2] [3] [4]

Background

Al Ain being from the Eastern region while Al Wahda hails from the city of Abu Dhabi, the two clubs compete to the claim the title of Abu Dhabi's best club. Many argue that this rivalry is the most significant in the country as the two clubs had the longest duel of battling titles from the late 90s to early 2000s, however with teams like Shabab Al Ahli and Al Jazira gaining momentum in recent years, both clubs has shifted their focus away from traditionally competing against each other. [5]

Statistics

Overview

As of 20 May 2024 [6]
Matches
Bianco e Viola.svg Al Ain winsDraws 600px Granata e Bianco.png Al Wahda wins Bianco e Viola.svg Al AinGoals 600px Granata e Bianco.png Al Wahda
110522236171306135

Head to head

The below list is since the professional era started in 2008–09. [7]

MatchesWinsDrawsGoalsHome winsHome drawsAway winsOther venue wins
AINWAHAINWAHAINWAHAINWAHAINWAHAINWAH
Pro League 31178648261041574
President's Cup 1111
League Cup 1455415121323311
Super Cup 11331
All competitions4723131167411244710721
Exhibition games 226211
All matches4925131173431344710731

Records

Results

Biggest wins

ResultDateCompetition
Al Wahda 5–1 Al Ain1986 Pro League
Al Ain 4–1 Al Wahda19 January 1998
Al Ain 5–3 Al Wahda30 October 2002
Al Wahda 4–1 Al Ain14 December 2005
Al Wahda 4–3 Al Ain16 May 2008
Al Ain 4–2 Al Wahda25 April 2009
Al Ain 4–0 Al Wahda10 December 2014
Al Ain 6–2 Al Wahda1 March 2018
Al Wahda 0–4 Al Ain12 March 2021
Al Wahda 0–3 Al Ain10 March 2023
Al Ain 4–1 Al Wahda2 June 1994 President's Cup
Al Wahda 1–4 Al Ain2 March 2012 League Cup
Al Ain 3–0 Al Wahda9 September 2013
Al Wahda 5–1 Al Ain16 February 2018
Al Wahda 4–1 Al Ain1986 Federation Cup
Al Wahda 4–0 Al Ain11 November 1999
Al Wahda 1–4 Al Ain27 February 2006

Most goals in a match

GoalsResultDateCompetition
8Al Ain 5–3 Al Wahda30 October 2002 Pro League
Al Ain 6–2 Al Wahda1 March 2018
7Al Wahda 4–3 Al Ain16 May 2008

Players

As of 20 May 2024

Goalscoring

Top goalscorers
  • Does not include friendly matches. [8]
RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Majid Al OwaisAl Ain11
2 Flag of Argentina.svg Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Sebastián Tagliabúe Al Wahda8
3 Flag of Togo (3-2).svg Kodjo Laba Al Ain5
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Ismail Matar Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohamed Al-Shehhi Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammed SalemAl Wahda
7 Flag of Morocco.svg Soufiane Rahimi Al Ain4
Flag of Sweden.svg Marcus Berg Al Ain
Flag of Ghana.svg Asamoah Gyan Al Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Sultan Rashed Al Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Abdulrahim Jumaa Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Abdulsalam Jumaa Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Subait Khater Al Ain
13 Flag of Brazil.svg Caio Lucas Al Ain3
Flag of Hungary.svg Balázs Dzsudzsák Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Ibrahim Diaky Al Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Haider Alo Ali Al Wahda
Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg Slaviša Mitrović Al Wahda
Flag of Sierra Leone.svg Lamin Conteh Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Gharib HaribAl Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammad Omar Al Ain
Flag of Ghana.svg Arthur Moses Al Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Fahed Masoud Al Wahda
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Salem JoharAl Ain
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Ahmed Abdullah Al Ain

Hat-tricks

only 2 players have scored a hat-trick in Classico matches. [8] [9]

No.PlayerForTotal
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Salem JoharAl Ain1
2 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Ahmed Abdullah Al Ain1

Double

No. [1] PlayerForTotal
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Majid Al OwaisAl Ain3
1 Flag of Brazil.svg Alecsandro Al Wahda1
1 Flag of Morocco.svg Soufiane Alloudi Al Ain1
1 Flag of Brazil.svg André Dias Al Ain1
1 Flag of Senegal.svg Matar Coly Al Wahda1
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Ali Msarri Al Ain1
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammad Omar Al Ain1
1 Flag of Ghana.svg Arthur Moses Al Ain1
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammed SalemAl Wahda1
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Saeed AshourAl Ain1
1 Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Matar Al SahbaniAl Ain1

Notes

  • Not including friendly matches.

General performances

General information

Al AinAl Wahda
Club name after establishmentAl Ain Sports ClubAl Wahda Sports and Cultural Club
Founding date1 August 19683 June 1984
Stadium Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan
Capacity25,05315,894
Number of seasons in Pro League (never been relegated)4737
Most goals scored in a season in the Pro League74 (2012–13)75 (2004–05)
Most points in a season in the Pro League65 (2021–22)65 (1998–99)
Number of the Double wins
(Pro League and President's Cup)		1 [note 1] 0
Number of the Double wins
(Pro League and AFC Champions League)		1 [note 2] 0
Number of the Treble wins
(Pro League, President's Cup and AFC Champions League)		0 [note 3] 0

Honours

  •    Numbers with this background indicate the record in the competition.
Al AinCompetitionAl Wahda
Domestic
14 Pro League 4
7 President's Cup 2
5 Federation Cup (defunct) / League Cup 6
5 Super Cup 4
Minor
2Abu Dhabi Championship (defunct)—
1Joint League (defunct)—
34Total16
Regional
1 GCC Champions League —
1Emirati-Moroccan Super Cup—
2Total0
Asia
2 AFC Champions League —
2Total0
38Grand total16

Shared players and managers

Players

The number of players that have played for both clubs are limited with the exception of a few local veterans. Only four foreign players have played for both clubs so far.

Saeed Al-Kathiri is the only player to score for and against both clubs.

Al Ain, then Al Wahda

PlayerAl Ain careerAl Wahda career
SpanLeague
apps		League
goals		SpanLeague
apps		League
goals
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mutaz Abdulla 1998–200921202009–2012240
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Fares Jumaa 2007–20157762020–present563
Flag of Chile.svg Jorge Valdivia 2008–201025122015–2017348
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Mohammed Al-Dhahri 2010–20151802015–2018280
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Salem Sultan 2013002013–2019551
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Rashed Muhayer 2013–20193102020–2022140
Flag of South Korea.svg Lee Myung-joo 2014–20177052020–2022373
Flag of Argentina.svg Cristian Guanca 2021–20222582023–202492

Al Wahda, then Al Ain

PlayerAl Wahda careerAl Ain career
SpanLeague
apps		League
goals		SpanLeague
apps		League
goals
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Yasser Matar 2006–200951201650
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Saeed Al-Kathiri 2006–201470132015–2017449
Flag of the United Arab Emirates.svg Yaqoub Al Hosani 2009–20123502012–2013120
Flag of Hungary.svg Balázs Dzsudzsák 2016–20184313202041

Managers

So far, Tite is the only coach to have represented both clubs, briefly managing Al Ain in 2007 and Al Wahda in 2010, his time at both clubs was cut short, getting sacked quickly at Al Ain due to disagreements with the club while at Al Wahda, he would sign for his former club Corinthians.

ManagerAl Ain careerAl Wahda career
SpanGWDLWin %SpanGWDLWin %
Flag of Brazil.svg Tite 2007942344.442010523040

Notes

  1. ↑ 2017–18
  2. ↑ 2002–03
  3. ↑ In 2002–03 Al Ain won the (Pro League, Super Cup and AFC Champions League), but Supercups don't count for treble

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al Ain FC</span> Emirati professional football club

Al Ain Football Club, known simply as Al Ain, is a professional football club based in the city of Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. It is one of many sport sections of the multi-sports club Al Ain Sports and Cultural Club.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Al Wahda FC</span> Emirati professional football club

Al Wahda Football Club is an Emirati professional football club based in Abu Dhabi, that competes in the UAE Pro League. 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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ismail Matar</span> Emirati footballer (born 1983)

Ismail Matar Ibrahim Khamis Al Mukhaini Al Junaibi is an Emirati footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UAE President's Cup</span> Football league

The UAE President's Cup, or simply the President Cup, is a football tournament that takes place in United Arab Emirates, between clubs in the UAE Pro League and the UAE First Division League. The winner qualifies for the AFC Champions League.

The 2009–10 season was Al Ain Football Club's 42nd in existence and the club's 35th consecutive season in the top-level football league in the UAE.

The 2010–11 season was Al Ain Football Club's 43rd in existence and the club's 36th consecutive season in the top-level football league in the UAE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">UAE Pro League</span> Top division in Emirati football

The UAE Pro League, known for sponsorship reasons as the ADNOC Pro League, is the top professional football league in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). The first team to win the title was Al Orouba (Sharjah), whilst Al Ain has the record with 14 league titles to their name. Fourteen clubs compete in the League that operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the First Division League.

The 2011 Etisalat Emirates Cup final was the third final since its establishment. The match took place at the Mohammad bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, on 29 April 2011. The match was won by Al Shabab, who beat Al Ain 2–3 to win their first title. and it was refereed by Ali Hamad.

The 2018–19, UAE Pro League was the 45th edition with Al Ain being the defending champions after winning their 13th title. Both Baniyas and Kalba returned to the pro league after getting relegated back at 2017. After losing Al Shabab and Dubai last season the league has been reduced to 12 teams. Both the teams needed to get back to 14 teams so they held a relegation play off between bottom two teams of last year and the 3rd and 4th placed teams of the 2nd division. Sharjah set a record of the longest unbeaten run in a UAE Pro League season for 23 games before losing to Al Wasl 3–2. In 2019, Sharjah won their first title since 1996 after beating Al Wahda 3–2, this was the first time a team outside of Dubai and Abu Dhabi won the league since the 1996. On 26 May, Emirates and Dibba Al Fujairah were relegated after a fixed match between Shabab Al Ahli and Fujairah favored Fujairah and got them out of relegation. The Emirates demanded that the UAEFA investigate on the match between Shabab Al Ahli and Fujairah, questioning the legitimacy of the two penalties that was rewarded to Fujairah and the two goals that was disallowed for Shabab Al Ahli. However the UAE court later rejected their complaint and the team got relegated

The 2019–20 UAE Pro League was the 46th edition of the UAE Pro League. On 26 April 2019, Khor Fakkan won the first division title over Al Taawon 3–0; this is their inaugural appearance on the pro league as Khor Fakkan Club as they were previously known as Al Khaleej, having been absent from the Pro League for twelve years. Hatta later returned to the pro league after a 1–0 away victory against Al Hamriyah secured them a spot on the first division after getting relegated a year ago. Sharjah are the defending champions. The League was put on hold on March due to the COVID-19 pandemic, however on June, with the majority of 12 out of 14 clubs votes, the league was cancelled and the champion is yet to be decided. On 18th of June, it was declared that this season will end with no champion despite Shabab Al-Ahli leading the table with 43 points and the same teams that qualified for the 2020 AFC Champions League will qualify for the 2021 AFC Champions League.

The 2018–19 UAE League Cup or 2018–19 Arabian Gulf Cup for sponsorship reasons, was the 11th season of the UAE League Cup.

The 2020–21 UAE Pro League was the 46th edition of the UAE Pro League following the cancellation of the previous season, no team changes occurred due to the previous season declared as void in UAE football. Despite starting the season with rough results, Al Jazira went on to win their third league title while Baniyas finished second, coincidentally, both teams finished in the same positions ten years ago in the 2010–11 season.

The 2020–21 Saudi Professional League was the 45th edition of the Saudi Professional League, the top Saudi professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1976. The season began on 17 October 2020 as a consequence of the postponement of the previous season's conclusion due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Fixtures for the 2020–21 season were announced on 29 September 2020.

The 2015–16 season was Al Ain Football Club's 48th in existence and the club's 41st consecutive season in the top-level football league in the UAE.

The 2022–23 UAE Pro League was the 48th edition of the UAE Pro League. Al Ain were the defending champions after winning their fourteenth title last season. There was a mid-season break due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

The 2022–23 Al Ain Football Club season was the club's 55th in existence and their 48th consecutive season in the top-level football league in the UAE.

The 2023–24 UAE Pro League is the 49th edition of the UAE Pro League. Shabab Al Ahli are the defending champions.

The 2023–24 Al Ain Football Club season is the club's 56th in existence and their 49th consecutive season in the top-level football league in the UAE.

References

  1. 1 2 "الوحدة والعين في الـكلاسيكو 50 الليلة". aletihad.ae. Retrieved 2024-06-18.
  2. ↑ Salam Al Amir (13 March 2022). "Arrests ordered after fighting breaks out during Al Ain and Al Wahda game". The National. Retrieved 13 March 2022.
  3. ↑ "الوحدة يقهر العين بثلاثية في كلاسيكو أبوظبي". 15 October 2022. Retrieved 15 October 2022.
  4. ↑ "العين و الوحدة الكلاسيكو الإماراتي". Al Ittihad. Retrieved 15 April 2005.
  5. ↑ "كلاسيكو الإمارات". Al Arabiya. Retrieved 13 October 2022.
  6. ↑ "H2H Comparison - Al Ain vs. Al Wahda - Teams". Soccerway. Retrieved 2022-10-15.
  7. ↑ "Head to Head stats". UAEProLeague.ae. Retrieved 2024-06-15.
  8. 1 2 "الكلاسيكو 45 بين العين والوحدة الليلة". aletihad.ae. Retrieved 2024-06-17.
  9. ↑ "hatrick". FootballUAE.net. Archived from the original on 27 June 2002. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.