UAE – The United Arab Emirates will take on the Kingdom of Bahrain today at 7 pm (Bahrain Local Time) at the opening of the 17th The AFC Asian Cup, which will run until the 1st of February.
Dubai Crown Prince, AFC Asian Cup High Organising Committee chairman, Shaikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum will patronise the inaugural ceremony at the Zayed Sports City Stadium in Abu Dhabi.
The opening ceremony will last 13 minutes and feature an operetta themed “Zanaha Zayed,” in tribute to the founding father and first president of the UAE late Shaikh Zayed bin Sultan Al-Nahyan.
The opening ceremony’s theme song was written by Arif Al Khaja and composed by Khalid Nasser. Mohammed Darwish Al Zarouni will oversee the spectacle while Roshan Soomarchun directs the showpiece.
Top UAE singers Hussain Al-Jassmi, Eida Al Menhali and Yemen-born singer Balqees Ahmed Fathi will take in the inaugural ceremony’s show, surroundeded by hundreds of performers.
The 17th The AFC Asian Cup will see the participation of 24 countries, an all-time high since the football championship was first launched.