The season-opening Arabian Gulf Super Cup has been moved from Bani Yas Stadium to the much-larger Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium in a bid to meet supporter demand.
The 2015/16 campaign is set to begin on Saturday, August 15 when Arabian Gulf League champions Al Ain meet President’s Cup holders Al Nasr. As two of the UAE’s best-supported sides, there had been disquiet since it was announced by the Pro League Committee in June the traditional inaugural contest would be held at the 9,570-capacity home of the Sky Blues.
The governing body has now decided to move the fixture across Abu Dhabi to Al Jazira’s cavernous 42,056-capacity ground to better facilitate interest in the match, which will still kick-off at 19:40.
“The Pro League Committee has decided to transfer the Arabian Gulf Super Cup match match between Al Ain and Al Nasr from Bani Yas Stadium to Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, home of Al Jazira,” a statement on the AGL website read on Sunday morning.
“The decision to move the match to Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium will provide the opportunity to the largest number of fans to attend the inaugural match of the season between Arabian Gulf League champions Al Ain and President’s Cup winners Al Nasr from the 2014/15 season.”
The much-delayed game was also played at the same venue last term, the Boss losing 1-0 to Al Ahli in March thanks to centre-back Salmeen Khamis’ late header.
