BASKETBALL – BAHRAIN’S Muharraq are set to face off with Kuwait SC in the Gulf sub-zone play-offs for a ticket to the semi-finals in the 2025-26 Fiba West Asia Super League (WASL).
The match-ups were set on Tuesday night following the completion of the preliminary round.
The kingdom’s representatives and their Kuwaiti opponents clash in a best-of-three affair, with the winners moving on to play Ittihad Club of Saudi Arabia in the Gulf final four.
The play-offs get underway on February 2 when Muharraq take on Kuwait away in Kuwait City. They then clash again one week later in the kingdom for game two, and then game three, if needed, is scheduled for February 16, again in Kuwait City.
The other Gulf sub-zone play-off is between Shabab Al Ahli of the UAE and Al Arabi SC of Qatar. The winners of their head-to-head take on Al Ula Club in the semis, which will be held in March and April.
The Gulf sub-zone finals and game for third place are also scheduled for April.
Both the semis and title-decider will be held in best-of-three format.
The top three teams in the Gulf sub-zone will earn direct berths in this season’s Fiba WASL Final Eight, where the overall champions will be determined.
This season’s edition of the Fiba WASL is its fourth. It is the second time that Muharraq are competing in the tournament. They also participated in the 2023-24 edition, when they made it through to the Gulf semi-finals but then lost to Bahraini rivals Manama, who were the first-ever Fiba WASL overall title winners in 2022-23.
Last season, Manama and Al Ahli were the kingdom’s representatives. Manama made it through to the Gulf semi-finals, while Ahli were eliminated by Manama in the play-offs for the semis.
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