MUSCAT: The draw ceremony for the 2025/2026 of His Majesty the Sultan’s Cup Football Championship will take place on Sunday (today) at the Sheraton Hotel, under the auspices of Eng Salim bin Nasser al Aufi, Minister of Energy and Minerals.
During the ceremony, the host governorate for the prestigious final match will be officially announced a first-of-its-kind initiative aimed at giving the selected governorate ample time to prepare for the anticipated final since the competition’s inception in 1971, several governorates including Muscat, Al Batinah North and Al Batinah South, Dhofar, Musandam, Al Sharqiyah North, and Al Sharqiyah South have proudly hosted the grand final.
A total of 22 clubs will participate in this year edition out of 50 registered teams under the Oman Football Association (OFA), the competition will kick off on October 23 with the Round of 32, featuring 12 fixtures between clubs such as Sur, Ibri, Dhofar, Samayil, Muscat, Jaalan Bani Bu Hassan, Al Musannah, Al Wusta, Salalah, Nizwa, Fanja and Al Mudhaibi.
The winners of these matches six clubs in total will join ten others that have automatically advanced to the Round of 16, including Oman Club, Al Seeb, Al Shabab, Al Khabourah, Sohar, Saham, Al Nahdha, Bahla, Al Nasr and Al Rustaq.
The Sultan’s Cup is widely regarded as Oman’s most prestigious football competition, with Dhofar Club leading the honors list with ten titles, followed by Fanja with nine, while Ahli Sidab and Al Nasr share third place with five each,
The most recent champions are Al Shabab, who lifted the trophy last February after defeating Al Seeb 1–0 in the final held at the Ibra Sports Complex. Today’s draw is expected to mark the start of another thrilling season, as Oman’s football clubs vie for the glory of lifting the Sultan’s most coveted cup.
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