Union of Arab Football Associations

Not to be confused with UEFA.

Union of Arab Football Associations
الإتحاد العربي لكرة القدم

AFC members    CAF members
Formation	27 January 1974;52 years ago (1974-01-27)
Type	Sports organization
Headquarters	Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Region served	Arab world
Membership	22 members Saudi Arabia Algeria Bahrain Comoros Djibouti Egypt Iraq Jordan Kuwait Lebanon Libya Mauritania Morocco Oman Palestine Qatar Somalia Sudan Syria Tunisia United Arab Emirates Yemen
Official language	Arabic
President	Abdulaziz bin Turki
Website	uafa-ac.com

The Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA; Arabic : الاتحاد العربي لكرة القدم; French : Union des associations de football arabe) is the governing body of football in the Arab League. ^{[1] [2] [3]} Established in 1974, UAFA is an independent body comprising 22 member associations: twelve from Asia and ten from Africa. ^{[4] [5] [6] [7]}

UAFA organises a number of competitions, most notably the Arab Cup for national teams (which has been organised by FIFA since 2021) and the Arab Club Champions Cup for club teams. ^{[8] [9] [10] [11]}

History

The Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA) was established on 27 January 1974 in Tripoli, Libya. ^[12] In 1976, a general assembly was held in Damascus, Syria, and the football association headquarters were transferred to their present seat in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. ^[13]

Presidents

Period	Name
1974–1976	Abdul Latif Booker
1976–1999	Faisal bin Fahd
1999–2011	Sultan bin Fahd
2011–2014	Nawaf bin Faisal
2014–2017	Turki bin Khalid
2017–2019	Turki Al-Sheikh
2019–present	Abdulaziz bin Turki

Member associations

All UAFA members from the Asian Football Confederation are also members of the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF). All WAFF and Union of North African Football (UNAF) members are UAFA members.

Country	Confederation	Sub-confederation	Year
Algeria	CAF	UNAF	1974
Bahrain	AFC	WAFF	1976
Comoros	CAF	COSAFA	2003
Djibouti	CAF	CECAFA	1998
Egypt	CAF	UNAF	1974
Iraq	AFC	WAFF	1974
Jordan	AFC	WAFF	1974
Kuwait	AFC	WAFF	1976
Lebanon	AFC	WAFF	1978
Libya	CAF	UNAF	1974
Mauritania	CAF	UNAF	1989
Morocco	CAF	UNAF	1976
Oman	AFC	WAFF	1978
Palestine	AFC	WAFF	1974
Qatar	AFC	WAFF	1976
Saudi Arabia	AFC	WAFF	1974
Somalia	CAF	CECAFA	1974
Sudan	CAF	CECAFA	1978
Syria	AFC	WAFF	1974
Tunisia	CAF	UNAF	1976
United Arab Emirates	AFC	WAFF	1974
Yemen	AFC	WAFF	1978

Competitions

See also: List of association football competitions and FIFA International Match Calendar

Men's senior FIFA Arab Cup Arab Games Football Tournament Arab Futsal Cup Arab Beach Soccer Championship

Men's youth Arab Cup U-20 Arab Cup U-17 Arab Cup U-15

Women's senior and youth Arab Women's Cup Arab U-20 Women's Cup Arab U-17 Women's Cup

Clubs Arab Club Champions Cup Arab Cup Winners' Cup (defunct) Arab Super Cup (defunct)

Current title holders

See also: Portal:Current events/Sports, 2026 in association football, 2026 in sports, and FIFA International Match Calendar

For events postponed or cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, see Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports.

Competition		Edition	Champions	Title	Runners-up		Next edition	Dates
Men's national teams
Arab Cup		2025	Morocco	2nd	Jordan		2029	TBD
Arab Cup U-20		2022	Saudi Arabia	2nd	Egypt		2026	23 July - 8 August
Arab Cup U-17		2022	Algeria	1st	Morocco		2026	21 April - 7 May
Football at the Arab Games		2023	Saudi Arabia	1st	Syria		2027	TBD
Arab Futsal Cup		2023	Morocco	3rd	Kuwait		2027	26 October - 6 November
Arab Beach Soccer Championship		2023	Egypt	2nd	Oman		2027	6–16 November
Women's national teams
Arab Women's Cup		2021	Jordan	1st	Tunisia		2027	2–18 September
Arab U-20 Women's Cup							TBD	TBD
Arab U-17 Women's Cup		2015	Lebanon	1st	Djibouti		2026	26 March - 11 April
Men's club teams
Arab Club Champions Cup		2023 (final)	Al Nassr	1st	Al Hilal		2027	21 July - 7 August
Arab Club Cup Futsal							2026	1–11 October
Women's club teams
Women's Arab Club Cup							TBD	TBD

FIFA World Rankings

Further information: FIFA Men's World Rankings and FIFA Women's World Rankings

Men's national teams Rankings are calculated by FIFA. [14] UAFA FIFA Country Points +/− Confederation 1 11   Morocco 1716.34 0 CAF 2 34   Algeria 1517.68 1 CAF 3 35   Egypt 1515.18 1 CAF 4 41   Tunisia 1494.86 1 CAF 5 54   Qatar 1454.96 3 AFC 6 58   Iraq 1436.94 0 AFC 7 60   Saudi Arabia 1429.48 0 AFC 8 64   Jordan 1388.93 2 AFC 9 68   United Arab Emirates 1370.47 1 AFC 10 79   Oman 1313.46 0 AFC 11 86   Syria 1282.62 1 AFC 12 90   Bahrain 1258.53 1 AFC 13 95   Palestine 1244.73 1 AFC 14 108   Lebanon 1187.96 1 AFC 15 109   Comoros 1186.41 1 CAF 16 111   Libya 1183.06 0 CAF 17 115   Mauritania 1171.35 1 CAF 18 117   Sudan 1154.44 1 CAF 19 135   Kuwait 1105.1 0 AFC 20 149   Yemen 1049.49 1 AFC 21 196   Djibouti 847.03 0 CAF 22 200   Somalia 828.9 0 CAF Last updated 22 December 2025

Women's national teams Rankings are calculated by FIFA. [15] UAFA FIFA Country Points +/− Confederation 1 66   Morocco 1399.536 2 CAF 2 73   Algeria 1322.267 7 CAF 3 76   Jordan 1297.824 0 AFC 4 98   Tunisia 1197.497 2 CAF 5 101   Egypt 1193.877 6 CAF 6 110   Bahrain 1169.301 1 AFC 7 120   United Arab Emirates 1132.146 3 AFC 8 126   Palestine 1102.886 3 AFC 9 130   Lebanon 1100.946 5 AFC 10 161   Saudi Arabia 934.252 3 AFC 11 162   Syria 931.424 2 AFC 12 166   Iraq 910.493 0 AFC 13 187   Libya 739.938 0 CAF 14 190   Comoros 728.71 2 CAF 15 197   Djibouti 598.384 2 CAF - -   Kuwait AFC - -   Qatar AFC - -   Sudan CAF - -   Mauritania CAF - -   Somalia CAF Last updated 11 December 2025

International competitions participation

Legend

— CAF teams   — AFC teams

1st — Champions 2nd — Runners-up 3rd — Third place 4th — Fourth place SF – Semi-final (no third place match) QF — Quarterfinals (1934–1938, 1954–1970, and 1986–present: knockout round of 8) R2 — Round 2 (1974–1978, second group stage, top 8; 1982: second group stage, top 12; 1986–2022: knockout round of 16) R1 — Round 1 (1930, 1950–1970 and 1986-present: group stage; 1934–1938: knockout round of 16; 1974–1982: first group stage)

Q — Qualified for upcoming tournament  ••  — Qualified but withdrew  •  — Did not qualify  ×  — Did not enter / Withdrew / Banned / Entry not accepted by FIFA    — Hosts     — Not affiliated to FIFA

FIFA World Cup

Main article: FIFA World Cup

Team	1930 (13)	1934 (16)	1938 (15)	1950 (13)	1954 (16)	1958 (16)	1962 (16)	1966 (16)	1970 (16)	1974 (16)	1978 (16)	1982 (24)	1986 (24)	1990 (24)	1994 (24)	1998 (32)	2002 (32)	2006 (32)	2010 (32)	2014 (32)	2018 (32)	2022 (32)	2026 (48)	2030 (48)	2034 (48)	Total	inclusive WC Qual.
Algeria	Part of France [16]							×	•	•	•	R1 13th	R1 22nd	•	•	•	•	•	R1 28th	R2 14th	•	•	Q			5	15
Egypt	×	R1 13th	×	×	•	×	×	×	×	•	•	•	•	R1 20th	•	•	•	•	•	•	R1 31st	•	Q			4	16
Iraq				×	×	×	×	×	×	•	×	•	R1 23rd	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	Q			1	12
Jordan				×	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	Q			1	12
Kuwait				×	×	×	×	×	×	•	•	R1 21st	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•			1	13
Morocco	Part of France						•	×	R1 14th	•	•	•	R2 11th	•	R1 23rd	R1 18th	•	•	•	•	R1 27th	4th	Q	Q		7	16
Qatar										x	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	R1 32nd	Q			2	13
Saudi Arabia						×	×	×	×	×	•	•	•	•	R2 12th	R1 28th	R1 32nd	R1 T-28th	•	•	R1 26th	R1 25th	Q		Q	7	13
Tunisia	Part of France						•	×	•	•	R1 9th	•	•	•	•	R1 26th	R1 29th	R1 24th	•	•	R1 24th	R1 21st	Q			7	16
United Arab Emirates											×	×	•	R1 24th	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•			1	10
Total	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	2	3	2	2	3	2	2	1	1	4	4	7			32

FIFA Women's World Cup

Main article: FIFA Women's World Cup records and statistics

FIFA Women's World Cup record
Team	1991 (12)	1995 (12)	1999 (16)	2003 (16)	2007 (16)	2011 (16)	2015 (24)	2019 (24)	2023 (32)	2027 (32)	Apps.
Morocco	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	R2 12th		1/9
Total (1 team)	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1		1

Olympic Games

Main article: Football at the Summer Olympics

Nation	00	04		08	12	20	24	28	36	48	52	56	60	64	68	72	76	80	84	88	92	96	00	04	08	12	16	20	24	28	Years
Algeria	Part of France													–	–	–		8	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	14	–	–		2
Egypt [17]					–	8	8	4	=9	=11	=9	w/o	12	4	–	–	–	w/o	8	–	12	–	–	–	–	8	–	8	4		13
Iraq										–			–	–	–			5	14	9	–	–	–	4	–	–	12	–	10		6
Kuwait															–	–	–	6	–	–	16	–	12	–	–	–	IOA	–	–		3
Morocco					Part of France								–	13	w/o	8	–		12	–	15	–	16	=10	–	11	–	–	3		8
Qatar																			15	–	8	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–		2
Saudi Arabia																–	–	w/o	16	–	–	15	–	–	–	–	–	15	–		3
Sudan	Part of the United Kingdom												–		–	15			–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–		1
Syria										–			UAR		–	–		14	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–	–		1
Tunisia	Part of France												15	–	–	–	–		–	13	–	14	–	12	–	–	–	–	–		4
United Arab Emirates																			–	–	–	–	–	–	–	15	–	–	–		1
Total nations	0	0		0	0	1	1	1	1	1	1	0	2	2	0	2	0	4	5	2	4	2	2	3	0	3	2	2	3		44

FIFA Arab Cup

Main article: FIFA Arab Cup

Team	1963 (5)	1964 (5)	1966 (10)	1985 (6)	1988 (10)	1992 (6)	1998 (12)	2002 (10)	2012 (11)	2021 (16)	2025 (16)	2029 (16)	Total
Algeria	×	×	×	×	GS	×	GS	×	×	1st	QF		4
Bahrain	×	×	GS	2nd	GS	×	×	2nd	GS	GS	GS		7
Comoros	×	×	x	x	x	×	×	x	x	•	GS		1
Djibouti	×	×	x	x	x	×	×	x	x	•	•		0
Egypt	×	×	×	×	3rd	1st	GS	×	GS	4th	GS		6
Iraq	×	1st	1st	1st	1st	×	×	×	3rd	GS	QF		7
Jordan	GS	GS	GS	GS	4th	GS	GS	SF	×	QF	2nd		10
Kuwait	4th	3rd	GS	×	GS	3rd	3rd	GS	GS	•	GS		9
Lebanon	3rd	4th	4th	×	GS	×	GS	GS	GS	GS	•		8
Libya	×	2nd	3rd	×	×	×	GS	×	2nd	•	•		4
Mauritania	×	×	×	GS	•	×	×	×	×	GS	•		2
Morocco	×	×	×	×	×	×	GS	SF	1st	QF	1st		5
Oman	×	×	GS	×	×	×	×	×	×	QF	GS		3
Palestine	×	×	GS	×	×	GS	•	GS	GS	GS	QF		6
Qatar	×	×	×	4th	×	×	2nd	×	×	3rd	GS	Q	5
Saudi Arabia	×	×	×	3rd	GS	2nd	1st	1st	4th	GS	3rd		8
Somalia	×	×	x	x	x	×	×	x	x	•	•		0
Sudan	×	×	×	•	×	×	GS	GS	GS	GS	GS		5
Syria	2nd	×	2nd	×	2nd	4th	GS	GS	×	GS	QF		8
Tunisia	1st	×	×	×	GS	×	×	×	×	2nd	GS		4
United Arab Emirates	×	×	×	×	×	×	4th	×	×	QF	3rd		3
Yemen	×	×	GS	×	×	×	×	GS	GS	•	•		3

Note: in the 2025 tournament, the third place match was abandoned. FIFA later declared that both participating teams would share third place in the tournament. ^[18]

Arab Games

Main article: Football at the Arab Games

Team	1953	1957	1961	1965	1976	1985	1992	1997	1999	2007	2011	2023	2027	Years
Algeria						3rd						4th		2
Bahrain									GS		1st			2
Egypt	1st		2nd	1st			1st			1st				5
Iraq		GS		GS		1st			2nd		GS			5
Jordan	4th	GS			GS		GS	1st	1st		2nd			7
Kuwait			GS				3rd	4th			3rd			4
Lebanon	GS	3rd	4th	GS				3rd	GS			GS		7
Libya	3rd	GS	3rd	3rd		GS		GS	SF	2nd	GS			9
Mauritania					GS	GS		GS				GS		4
Morocco		4th	1st		1st	2nd								4
Oman				GS				GS	GS		GS	GS		5
Palestine	GS			4th	GS		GS		SF		4th	GS		7
Qatar									GS		GS			2
Saudi Arabia		GS	GS		2nd	4th	2nd		GS	3rd	GS	1st	Q	9
Somalia						GS								1
Sudan				2nd						GS	GS	3rd		4
Syria	2nd	1st		GS	3rd	GS	4th	2nd	GS			2nd		9
Tunisia		2nd				GS								2
United Arab Emirates						GS		GS	GS	4th				4
Yemen				GS	4th	GS								3
Total	6	8	6	9	7	11	6	8	11	5	10	8

Defunct competitions

FIFA Confederations Cup

Main article: FIFA Confederations Cup

Team	1992 (4)	1995 (6)	1997 (8)	1999 (8)	2001 (8)	2003 (8)	2005 (8)	2009 (8)	2013 (8)	2017 (8)	Years
Egypt	•	•	•	GS	•	•	•	GS	•	•	2
Iraq	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	GS	•	•	1
Saudi Arabia	2nd	GS	GS	4th	•	•	•	•	•	•	4
Tunisia	•	•	•	•	•	•	GS	•	•	•	1
United Arab Emirates	•	•	GS	•	•	•	•	•	•	•	1
Total	1	1	2	2	0	0	1	2	0	0	10

See also

• FIFA
  • Asian Football Confederation (AFC)
  • Confederation of African Football (CAF)

References

1. "The participants in the #FIFAWFC2019". FIFA.com. 1 June 2019.
2. "Jordan Football Association". FIFA.com. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
3. "Djiboutian Football Federation". FIFA.com. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
4. "About Us". UAFA-ac.com. Retrieved 29 March 2024.
5. "AFC and UAFA sign Memorandum of Understanding". Asian Football Confederation. 1 May 2015.
6. "Shaikh Salman looks for more cooperation with UAFA". Asian Football Confederation. 14 May 2017.
7. "AFC and SAFF Presidents hold productive discussions on football development". Asian Football Confederation. 26 May 2018.
8. "Morocco shock favourites to lift cup". FIFA.com. 7 July 2012. Archived from the original on 2012-08-01.
9. "FIFA Arab Cup 2021 – Teams – Lebanon". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. Archived from the original on 27 April 2021. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
10. "USM Alger 3-2 Al Arabi (UAFA Club Cup 2012/13)". FIFA.com. 11 June 2013. Archived from the original on 11 June 2013. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
11. "How Cristiano Ronaldo and Sadio Mane have bonded at Al Nassr". FIFA.com. 8 August 2023.
12. "مستندات وصور عن تاسيس الاتحاد العربي لكرة القدم". Libya Sport TV (Fb) (in Arabic). Redaction. 22 December 2019.
13. "Union of Arab Football Associations celebrates the 50th anniversary of foundation". uafa-ac.com. Redaction. 17 January 2024.
14. "Latest Men's World Ranking". FIFA. Redaction. 16 October 2025.
15. "Latest Women's World Ranking". FIFA. Redaction. 7 August 2025.
16. Algeria gained independence in 1962, but they joined with other African nations to boycott the 1966 FIFA World Cup. Thus the 1970 FIFA World Cup qualification was their first participation.
17. Egypt team represented the United Arab Republic with Syria in 1960 finishing the 12th and alone in 1964 finishing the 4th.
18. Ward, Kenley (18 December 2025). "Unique decision! FIFA announces verdict on abandoned third-place match between Saudi Arabia and UAE at the Arab Cup". Dailysports.net. Retrieved 18 December 2025.

External links

• Official website