Saudi, UAE, Bahrain football teams arrive in Qatar for Gulf Cup

The football teams of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain have arrived in Qatar to participate in the Arabian Gulf Cup.

This comes two years after Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Bahrain imposed a land, sea and air siege on the their small Gulf neighbour.

“For the first time in over two years — earlier this morning, Saudi Arabia’s national football team flew on a direct flight from Riyadh to Doha (despite Saudi’s ongoing 2+ year air blockade preventing direct flights) where they’ll participate in Gulf Cup” said international aviation analyst Alex Macheras on Twitter yesterday.

Latest: For the first time in over two years — earlier this morning, Saudi Arabia’s national football team flew on a direct flight from Riyadh to Doha (despite Saudi’s ongoing 2+ year air blockade preventing direct flights) where they’ll participate in Gulf Cup ✈️ #خليجي24 pic.twitter.com/gZWuvsFsR2

— Alex Macheras (@AlexInAir) November 25, 2019

“UAE national football team has arrived here in Qatar after flying on a private Boeing 737 jet from Dubai to Doha via Kuwait,” he added.

Observers believe the teams’ participation signals a breakthrough in relations between Qatar and the blockade countries.

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