List of Al Ain FC seasons

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For details of the current season, see 2023–24 Al Ain FC season.

Al Ain Football Club is an association football club based in Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, that competes in UAE Pro League, the top-division football league in United Arab Emirates. Founded in 1968 by players from Al Ain, members of a Bahraini group of exchange students and the Sudanese community working in the United Arab Emirates.[1] Al Ain is one of only three clubs never to have been relegated from the top level of Emirati football since 1975–76 season, the others being Al Nasr and Al Wasl.

## Key[edit]

* Pos. = Position
* Div. = Division
* C = Champion
* RU = Final (Runner-up)
* SF = Semi-finals
* QF = Quarter-finals
* R16/R32 = Round of 16, round of 32, etc.
* R1/R2 = First round, second round, etc.
* GS = Group stage
* PO = Play-off
* QS = Qualifying Stage
* W = Withdrew

Champions | Runners-up | 3rd Place | Advanced to next round but the cup continued in next season

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## Seasons[edit]

### Pre-Football League era[edit]

Season  | Div.  | Pos.  | Cup  | Manager

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1969–70[n 1] | Abu Dhabi Championship  |  | Abu Dhabi Ruler Cup  | Not held  |  Nasser Dhaen[2][3][4]
1970–71  | Abu Dhabi Championship  |  | Abu Dhabi Ruler Cup  | RU
1971–72  | Abu Dhabi Championship  | Not completed  | Abu Dhabi Ruler Cup  | RU |  Abdelaziz Hammami
1972–73  | Abu Dhabi Championship  |  | Abu Dhabi Ruler Cup  |
1973–74  | Abu Dhabi Championship  | 1st | Abu Dhabi Ruler Cup  | Not held  |  Ahmed Alyan
1974–75[n 2] | Abu Dhabi Championship  | 1st | UAE President's Cup | R16

Notes

1. ^ from 1969 to 1974, Al Ain competed in the championship and Cup of the Abu Dhabi region organised by Abu Dhabi Football Association.
2. ^ Played as Categorization League and organised by UAEFA, included four clubs from Abu Dhabi region, Al Ain, Al Emirates qualified to 1975–76 UAE Football League, Al Jazira, Abu Dhabi to 1975–76 First Division League.

### Football League and Pro League era[edit]

Season | Div. | Pos. | Pl. | W | D | L | GS | GA | GD | P | President's Cup | Federation Cup / League Cup[n 1] | Super Cup | GCC | ACCC | Asia | Other competitions | Top scorer | Manager

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1975–76 | 1 | 2nd | 16 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 33 | 15 | +18 | 24 | Not completed  | Not held  |  –  |  –  |  |  |  Ahmed Alyan
1976–77 | 1 | 1st | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 5 | Quarter-finals  |  Mohieddine Habita[5] |  |  Humaid Dhib
1977–78 | 1 | 2nd | 24 | 15 | 4 | 5 |  – | 34 | Not completed  |  |
1978–79 | 1 | 3rd | 20 |  – | 27 | RU |  |  |  Ahmed Alyan
1979–80 | 1 | 8th | 18 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 28 | 40 | −12 | 12 | Semi-Finals  |  |  |  Abdelmajid Chetali
1980–81 | 1 | 1st | 18 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 24 | 22 | +2 | 24 | RU |  Ahmed Abdullah |  |  Abdelmajid Chetali
Ahmed Nagah*
1981–82 | 1 | 2nd | 18 |  – | 21 | Quarter-finals  | Not held  |  –  |  |  |  Ahmed Nagah
1982–83 | 1 | 5th | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 19 |  | Not held  |  –  | Not held  | Joint League  | C |  |  |  Nelsinho Rosa
1983–84 | 1 | 1st | 18 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 35 | 18 | +17 | 27 |  |  –  |  –  |  Ahmed Abdullah |
1984–85 | 1 | 8th |  –  | Quarter-finals  | Group Stage  | Not held  | Gulf Club Champions Cup | GS  | Joint League  | 4th  |  |  |  Miljan Miljanić
1985–86 | 1 | 9th | 18 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 27 | 47 | −20 | 14 |  | RU |  –  |  –  |  |
1986–87 | 1 | 3rd | 20 | 11 | 3 | 6 | 32 | 23 | +9 | 25 |  | Not held  |  |  |  Jair Picerni
João Francisco
1987–88 | 1 | 5th | 22 | 9 | 6 | 7 | 26 | 24 | +2 | 33 |  |  |  |  |  João Francisco
1988–89 | 1 | 5th | 22 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 29 | 21 | +8 | 25 |  | C |  |  |  Zé Mario
1989–90 | 1 | 7th | 26 | 9 | 9 | 8 | 36 | 26 | +10 | 27 | RU | Not held  |  –  | Not held  | Not held  |  |
1990–91[n 2] | 1 | 8th | 13 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 10 | +5 | 15 |  | Not held  | Not held  |  –  | cancelled[n 3] |  |  |  Mahieddine Khalef
1991–92 | 1 | 7th | 30 | 13 | 8 | 9 | 42 | 35 | +7 | 34 | Round of 16  |  –  |  |
1992–93 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 54 | 13 | +41 | 35 |  | Group Stage  |  –  |  Saif Sultan  |  |  Yusri Abdul Ghani
Amarildo
1993–94 | 1 | 2nd | 18 | 12 | 5 | 1 | 31 | 10 | +21 | 29 | RU | RU | RU |  |  |  Amarildo
1994–95 | 1 | 2nd | 18 | 7 | 9 | 2 | 26 | 15 | +11 | 23 | RU |  –  | 1st | Gulf Club Champions Cup | 5th  |  |  |  Amarildo
Shaker Abdel-Fattah
1995–96 | 1 | 3rd | 18 | 6 | 7 | 5 | 17 | 11 | +6 | 25 | Round of 16  | Not held  | 4th  |  –  | Asian Cup Winners' Cup | R2  |  |  |  Ángel Marcos
1996–97 | 1 | 5th | 28 | 10 | 11 | 7 | 40 | 31 | +9 | 41 | Round of 16  | Not held  |  –  |  |  |  Lori Sandri
Cabralzinho
1997–98 | 1 | 1st | 32 | 17 | 9 | 6 | 49 | 29 | +20 | 61 | Semi-Finals  |  Salem Johar  |  |  Shaker Abdel-Fattah
1998–99 | 1 | 2nd | 33 | 16 | 9 | 8 | 58 | 36 | +22 | 57 | C | Asian Club Championship | 3rd |  Seydou Traoré | 15  |  Nelo Vingada
Ilie Balaci
1999–2000 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 48 | 25 | +23 | 47 | Round of 16  | Group Stage  | Asian Cup Winners' Cup | R1  |  Majid Al Owais | 15  |  Ilie Balaci
2000–01 | 1 | 4th | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 33 | 27 | +6 | 34 | C | Group Stage  | Gulf Club Champions Cup | C | Asian Club Championship | R2  |  Juma Mossi | 15  |  Oscar Fulloné
Mrad Mahjoub
Ahmed Abdullah *
Anghel Iordănescu
2001–02 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 14 | 5 | 3 | 44 | 23 | +21 | 47 | Semi-Finals  | Group Stage  | RU |  –  | Arab Club Champions Cup | W[n 4] | Asian Cup Winners' Cup | QF  |  Joël Tiéhi | 19  |  Džemal Hadžiabdić
2002–03 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 51 | 20 | +31 | 48 | Quarter-finals  | Not held  | C |  –  | AFC Champions League | C |  Boubacar Sanogo | 24  |  Bruno Metsu
2003–04 | 1 | 1st | 16 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 34 | 17 | +17 | 36 | Semi-Finals  | Not held  | Not held  | AFC Champions League | bye GS [n 5] |  Rodrigo Mendes | 19
2004–05 | 1 | 2nd | 26 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 54 | 26 | +28 | 57 | C | C |  –
AFC Champions League | QF  |  Edílson | 22  |  Alain Perrin
Mohammad El Mansi *
Milan Máčala
AFC Champions League | QF
2005–06 | 1 | 4th | 22 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 42 | 23 | +19 | 41 | C | C
AFC Champions League | RU  |  Nenad Jestrović | 14  |  Milan Máčala
Mohammad El Mansi *
AFC Champions League | QF
2006–07 | 1 | 9th | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 22 | 26 | −4 | 28 | RU | Group Stage
AFC Champions League | QF  |  Nenad Jestrović | 9  |  Anghel Iordănescu
Tiny Ruys *
Walter Zenga
AFC Champions League | GS
2007–08 | 1 | 6th | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 41 | 36 | +5 | 32 | Round of 16  | Not held  |  –  |  Ousman Jallow | 11  |  Tite
Winfried Schäfer
2008–09 | 1 | 3rd | 22 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 40 | 20 | +20 | 43 | C | C |  –  | Not held  |  André Dias | 23  |  Winfried Schäfer
2009–10 | 1 | 3rd | 22 | 14 | 3 | 5 | 57 | 29 | +28 | 45 | Round of 16  | Semi-Finals  | C |  –  | AFC Champions League | GS  |  José Sand | 33  |  Winfried Schäfer
Rachid Benmahmoud *
Toninho Cerezo
Abdulhameed Al Mistaki *
2010–11 | 1 | 10th | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 33 | 35 | −2 | 25 | Round of 16  | RU  |  –  | AFC Champions League | GS  |  José Sand
Omar Abdulrahman | 11  |  Abdulhameed Al Mistaki *
Ahmed Abdullah *
Alexandre Gallo
2011–12 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 52 | 16 | +36 | 55 | Quarter-Finals  | Group Stage  |  –  |  Asamoah Gyan | 27  |  Cosmin Olăroiu
2012–13 | 1 | 1st | 26 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 74 | 26 | +48 | 62 | Semi-Finals  | Group Stage  | C | AFC Champions League | GS  |  Asamoah Gyan | 32
2013–14 | 1 | 6th | 26 | 12 | 7 | 7 | 52 | 33 | +19 | 43 | C | Group Stage  | RU | AFC Champions League | QF  |  Asamoah Gyan | 45  |  Jorge Fossati
Ahmed Abdullah *
Quique Flores
Zlatko Dalić
2014–15 | 1 | 1st | 26 | 18 | 6 | 2 | 62 | 19 | +43 | 60 | Quarter-Finals  | Group Stage  | RU
AFC Champions League | SF  |  Asamoah Gyan | 24  |  Zlatko Dalić
AFC Champions League | R16
2015–16 | 1 | 2nd | 26 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 53 | 24 | +29 | 57 | RU | Group Stage  | C | Cancelled  | AFC Champions League | QF  | Emirati-Moroccan Super Cup  | C  |  Dyanfres Douglas | 18
2016–17 | 1 | 4th | 26 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 58 | 37 | +21 | 55 | Quarter-Finals  | Group Stage  |  –  | Arab Club Champions Cup | W[n 6] | AFC Champions League | RU  |  –  |  Caio Lucas | 18  |  Zlatko Dalić
Joško Španjić *
Zoran Mamić
AFC Champions League | QF
2017–18 | 1 | 1st | 22 | 16 | 5 | 1 | 65 | 23 | +42 | 53 | C | Quarter-Finals  | Not held  |  –  | AFC Champions League | QF  |  Marcus Berg | 35  |  Zoran Mamić
AFC Champions League | R16
2018–19 | 1 | 4th | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 45 | 35 | +10 | 46 | Round of 16  | Quarter-Finals  | RU | Arab Club Champions Cup | R32  | AFC Champions League | GS  | FIFA Club World Cup | RU |  Caio Lucas | 17  |  Zoran Mamić
Željko Sopić *
Juan Garrido
2019–20[n 7] | 1 | 2nd | 19 | 11 | 4 | 4 | 46 | 21 | +25 | 37 | Final  | Semi-Finals  |  –  |  –  | AFC Champions League | GS  | —  |  Kodjo Laba | 28  |  Ivan Leko
Ghazi Fahad *
Pedro Emanuel
2020–21 | 1 | 6th | 26 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 39 | 33 | +6 | 41 | Round of 16  | First Round  |  –  | AFC Champions League | QS  |  Kodjo Laba | 13  |  Pedro Emanuel
2021–22 | 1 | 1st | 26 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 57 | 17 | +40 | 65 | Quarter-finals  | C | —  |  Kodjo Laba | 31  |  Serhii Rebrov
2022–23 | 1 | 2nd | 26 | 16 | 6 | 4 | 67 | 31 | +36 | 54 | RU | RU | RU |  Kodjo Laba | 31
2023–24 | 1 | 3rd | 26 | 14 | 3 | 9 | 54 | 37 | +17 | 45 | Quarter-finals  | RU | —  | AFC Champions League | C |  Soufiane Rahimi | 23  |  Alfred Schreuder
Hernán Crespo

Notes

1. ^ Starting from the 2008-09 season or whats known as the Pro Era, UAE Federation Cup was replaced with UAE League Cup.
2. ^ cancelled due to Gulf War.
3. ^ cancelled due to Gulf War.
4. ^ Al-Ain withdrew the tournament, Al-Rayyan replaced it.
5. ^ bye through the Group Stage as the reigning champions
6. ^ Al-Ain withdrew the tournament, Al-Wahda replaced it.
7. ^ 2019–20 UAE football season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Arab Emirates.

## References[edit]

1. ^ "club Foundation3". alainclub.com. Archived from the original on 1 August 2007. Retrieved 23 June 2014.
2. ^ "ناصر ضاعن: ملعب "دوار الساعة" شاهد على الانطلاقة". Al-Ittihad.
3. ^ "أفكار محمد وهزاع بن زايد وراء القفزة النوعية للبنفسج". Al Bayan.
4. ^ "ناصر ضاعن أول مواطن يقود تدريب العين". Al Bayan.
5. ^ "قصة زعامة الفريق البنفسجي". AlKhaleej.ae. Retrieved 22 June 2024.

## External links[edit]

* Al Ain FC official website (in English and Arabic)
* UAE Football Stats at rsssf.com (in English)

* v
* t
* e

Al Ain Sports and Cultural Club

* History
* Academy
* Players
* Managers
* Presidents
* Seasons
* International
* Statistics
* Current season

Home stadiums|

* Hazza bin Zayed Stadium (2014–present)
* Tahnoun bin Mohammed Stadium (1987–2014)
* Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium (1971–1987)

Training ground|

* Tahnoun bin Mohammed Stadium
* Khalifa bin Zayed Stadium

Rivalries|

* Al Wahda
* Shabab Al Ahli

Other sports|

* Basketball
* Handball
* Volleyball
* Athletics
* Swimming
* Jiu-Jitsu (Men's)
* Jiu-Jitsu (Women's)
* Superleague Formula (defunct)

* Category
* Commons

* v
* t
* e

Al Ain FC seasons

Foundation and early years|

* 1968–69
* 1969–70
* 1970–71
* 1971–72
* 1972–73
* 1973–74
* 1974–75

UAE Football League|

* 1975–76
* 1976–77
* 1977–78
* 1978–79
* 1979–80
* 1980–81
* 1981–82
* 1982–83
* 1983–84
* 1984–85
* 1985–86
* 1986–87
* 1987–88
* 1988–89
* 1989–90
* 1990–91
* 1991–92
* 1992–93
* 1993–94
* 1994–95
* 1995–96
* 1996–97
* 1997–98
* 1998–99
* 1999–2000
* 2000–01
* 2001–02
* 2002–03
* 2003–04
* 2004–05
* 2005–06
* 2006–07
* 2007–08

UAE Pro League|

* 2008–09
* 2009–10
* 2010–11
* 2011–12
* 2012–13
* 2013–14
* 2014–15
* 2015–16
* 2016–17
* 2017–18
* 2018–19
* 2019–20
* 2020–21
* 2021–22
* 2022–23
* 2023–24
* 2024–25

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