Baghdad, Al-Diyar al-Arabia Championship for West Asian U-19 teams begins today, Tuesday, hosted by the Saudi city of Taif for the period from June 25 to next July 5, and organized by the West Asian Football Federation with the participation of 12 teams: Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Bahrain, Emirates, Oman, Yemen, Kuwait, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, and Palestine, in addition to the Albanian national team, the guest of the tournament.
The invitation of the Albanian national team from outside the region comes as a continuation of the West Asian Federation’s plans to expand participation and open the way for national federation teams to play matches with competitors from outside the region with the aim of diversifying and gaining more experiences.’
The draw, which was held on June 18, resulted in 6 matches in the first round of the tournament, as the Saudi under-19 team meets the Yemeni team in the opening of its tournament, while the Oman team meets the Kuwait team, the Iraq team meets the Jordan team, and the Lebanon team meets the Albania team, as well as Bahrain national team will meet the Emirates national team, and the round will conclude with the Syrian national team facing the Palestine national team, and all tournament matches will be played at the King Fahd Sports City stadiums and the Okaz Club stadium.
Source: National Iraqi News Agency