JEDDAH: The draw for the 19th Gulf Cup in Oman in 2009 took place in Oman last night with Saudi Arabia bunched in Group B with UAE, Qatar and Yemen.
Joining the host in Group A were Bahrain and Iraq.
There were only three teams in the group after Kuwait was excluded from the draw having been suspended by the world football governing body FIFA.
The competition is scheduled to to be held in early January next year.
Saudi Arabia’s task in the group maches will not be easy as the team has to deal with strong sides Qatar and UAE.
Yemen, the newcomer in the competition which debuted in the last tournament in UAE, is expected to show a different performance as it is keen to earn the respect of teams from the Gulf countries.
Oman has a relatively easy task in Group A since only one team is to be dropped after the eliminations.
Kuwait are the favorites in the competition having won the title in 1970, 1972, 1974, 1976, 1982, 1986, 1990, 1996 and 1998.
Saudi Arabia and Iraq each has three titles under its belt.
Saudi Arabia clinched the title in 1994, 2002 and 2003 with Iraq winning in 1979, 1984 and 1988.
Qatar won twice — when it hosted the event in 1992 and in 2004.
UAE’s lone victory came in 2007. Oman and Bahrain are the only two teams which have yet to win a championship in the prestigious tournament.
