2022–23 UAE Pro League

The 2022–23 UAE Pro League was the 48th edition of the UAE Pro League. Al Ain were the defending champions after winning their fourteenth title last season. This season had also have a mid-break due to the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. Shabab Al Ahli secured the title after beating Baniyas 2–1, on the 7th of May.

UAE Pro League
Season2022–23
Dates2 September – 13 May
ChampionsShabab Al Ahli (8th title)
RelegatedAl Dhafra
Dibba Al Fujairah
2023 AFC Champions LeagueAl Ain
Shabab Al Ahli
Sharjah
Matches played137
Goals scored414 (3.02 per match)
Top goalscorerKodjo Laba
(28 goals)
Biggest home winAl Ain 7–0 Al Dhafra
(10 September 2022)
Biggest away winAl Bataeh 0–6 Shabab Al Ahli
(4 November 2022)
Highest scoringKalba 5–3 Al Nasr
(29 October 2022)
Longest winning runAl Ain
Al Wahda
(7 games)
Longest unbeaten runShabab Al Ahli
(13 games)
Longest winless runAl Dhafra
(11 games)
Longest losing runAl Dhafra
(11 games)
All statistics correct as of 14 May 2023.

Teams

Dibba Al Fujairah would get promoted back after winning the First Division league by beating Al Arabi 2–1, they would return after being absent for three seasons. Al Bataeh would secure promotion on the last day after beating Al Hamriyah 4–2, this will be their first ever season on the top flight in the clubs history.

Relegated to the First Division

Emirates would get relegated back to the First Division after a 0–1 home defeat to Al Urooba on the 17th of May. Al Urooba would also get relegated after losing to Al Dhafra 2–1 on the final matchday.

Stadia and locations
Locations of teams in the 2022–23 UAE Pro League
Note: Table lists clubs in alphabetical order.
Team Home city Stadium Capacity
Ajman Ajman Ajman Stadium 5,537
Al Ain Al-Ain Hazza Bin Zayed Stadium 25,965
Al Bataeh Al Bataeh Al Bataeh Stadium 2,000
Al Dhafra Madinat Zayed Al Dhafra Stadium 5,020
Al Jazira Abu Dhabi (Al Nahyan) Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium 42,056
Al Nasr Dubai (Al Nasr) Al-Maktoum Stadium 15,058
Al Wahda Abu Dhabi (Al Nahyan) Al Nahyan Stadium 12,201
Al Wasl Dubai (Zabeel) Zabeel Stadium 8,439
Baniyas Abu Dhabi (Al Shamkha) Baniyas Stadium 10,000
Dibba Al Fujairah Dibba Al-Fujairah New Dibba Stadium 9,500
Kalba Kalba Ittihad Kalba Stadium 8,500
Khor Fakkan Khor Fakkan SBM Al Qassimi Stadium 7,500
Shabab Al Ahli Dubai (Deira) Al-Rashid Stadium 12,052
Sharjah Sharjah Sharjah Stadium 20,000

Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team Head Coach Captain Kit Manufacturer Shirt Sponsor
Ajman Serbia Goran Tufegdžić United Arab Emirates Ali Al-Hosani Adidas Ajman Bank
Al Ain Ukraine Serhiy Rebrov United Arab Emirates Bandar Al-Ahbabi Nike First Abu Dhabi Bank
Al Bataeh Morocco Said Chkhit United Arab Emirates Khamis Esmaeel Nike N/A
Al Dhafra Serbia Aleksandar Veselinović United Arab Emirates Ahmed Ali Kelme ADNOC
Al Jazira Netherlands Marcel Keizer United Arab Emirates Ali Khasif Zat Outfit Healthpoint
Al Nasr Croatia Goran Tomić United Arab Emirates Tareq Ahmed N45 Emirates Islamic
Al Wahda Netherlands Arno Buitenweg United Arab Emirates Mohammed Barqesh Adidas N/A
Al Wasl Spain Juan Antonio Pizzi United Arab Emirates Ali Salmeen Macron Dubai Real Estate Centre
Baniyas Romania Daniel Isăilă United Arab Emirates Fawaz Awana Macron ADIB
Dibba Al Fujairah United Arab Emirates Hassan Al Abdouli United Arab Emirates Mohamed Al Rowaihy uhlsport Fujairah Investment
Kalba Iran Farhad Majidi United Arab Emirates Mansor Abbas Errea Caltex
Khor Fakkan United Arab Emirates Abdulaziz Al Yassi United Arab Emirates Saif Mohammed Adidas N/A
Shabab Al Ahli Portugal Leonardo Jardim United Arab Emirates Majed Naser Nike Nissan
Dubai Integrated Economic Zones
Sharjah Romania Cosmin Olăroiu United Arab Emirates Shahin Abdulrahman Adidas SAIF Zone
University Hospital Sharjah

Foreign players
  • Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the mid-season transfer window.
  • Players in italics were out of the squad or left the club within the season, after the pre-season transfer window, or in the mid-season transfer window, and at least had one appearance.
Club Player 1 Player 2 Player 3 Player 4 Player 5 Former players
Ajman Slovenia Miral Samardžić Tunisia Firas Ben Larbi Morocco Walid Azaro Bahrain Ali Madan Republic of the Congo Prestige Mboungou
Al Ain Togo Kodjo Fo-Doh Laba Morocco Soufiane Rahimi Ukraine Andriy Yarmolenko Morocco Mehdi Moubarik Croatia Tin Jedvaj Colombia Danilo Arboleda
Al Bataeh Cameroon Anatole Abang Brazil Lourency Portugal Artur Jorge Portugal João Novais Ghana Kwame Bonsu South Africa Thibang Phete
Al Dhafra Netherlands Mohamed Rayhi Brazil Cláudio Tunisia Walid Karoui Brazil Tiago Leonço Bulgaria Georgi Milanov Suriname Mitchell te Vrede
Brazil Lucas Cândido
Al Jazira Serbia Miloš Kosanović South Africa Thulani Serero Romania Florin Tănase Morocco Achraf Bencharki Iraq Aymen Hussein Czech Republic Filip Novák
Mali Abdoulay Diaby
Al Nasr Portugal Tozé Cape Verde Ryan Mendes Morocco Adel Taarabt Bosnia and Herzegovina Samir Memišević Togo Peniel Mlapa Brazil Jája Silva
The Gambia Dembo Darboe
Brazil Lucão
Al Wahda Brazil João Pedro Portugal Adrien Silva Brazil Allan Brazil Matheus Pereira Portugal Fábio Martins
Brazil Maracás
Portugal Pizzi
Egypt Ahmed Refaat
Al Wasl Algeria Djamel Benlamri Morocco Soufiane Bouftini Argentina Gerónimo Poblete Argentina Tomás Chancalay Chile Felipe Gutiérrez Brazil Gilberto
Brazil Gabrielzinho
Baniyas Serbia Saša Ivković Argentina Gastón Álvarez Suárez Argentina Nicolás Giménez Brazil Rafael Elias Senegal Opa Nguette
Dibba Al Fujairah Brazil Marcelo Brazil Jája Silva Brazil Edu Brazil Pedro Castro Brazil China Netherlands Joey Sleegers
Montenegro Aleksandar Šćekić
Mali Saliou Guindo
Botswana Kabelo Seakanyeng
Kalba Slovakia Filip Kiss Italy Daniel Bessa Brazil Igor Rossi Romania Alexandru Cicâldău Mali Abdoulay Diaby Togo Peniel Mlapa
Khor Fakkan Brazil Dodô Portugal Aylton Boa Morte Serbia Lazar Rosić Angola Fábio Abreu Algeria Mehdi Abeid Brazil Ramon Lopes
Greece Panagiotis Tachtsidis
Shabab Al Ahli Argentina Federico Cartabia Uzbekistan Azizjon Ganiev Iran Ahmad Nourollahi Syria Omar Khribin Belgium Jason Denayer
Sharjah Brazil Caio Spain Paco Alcácer Bosnia and Herzegovina Miralem Pjanić Greece Kostas Manolas Cape Verde Djaniny Senegal Makhete Diop

Managerial changes
Team Outgoing manager Date of vacancy Manner of departure Pos. Incoming manager Date of appointment
Al Nasr United Arab Emirates Salem Rabie 19 May 2022 Caretaker tenure ended Pre-season Germany Thorsten Fink 19 May 2022
Al Wahda France Grégory Dufrennes Portugal Carlos Carvalhal 1 July 2022
Kalba Uruguay Jorge da Silva 26 May 2022 End of contract Iran Farhad Majidi[1] 8 June 2022
Khor Fakkan Argentina Gabriel Calderón United Arab Emirates Abdulaziz Al Yassi[2] 14 June 2022
Shabab Al Ahli United Arab Emirates Mahdi Ali Portugal Leonardo Jardim 8 June 2022
Al Dhafra Syria Mohammad Kwid Serbia Nebojša Vignjević 11 July 2022
Al Bataeh Tunisia Tarek Hadhiri Brazil Caio Zanardi 27 May 2022
Al Wasl Brazil Odair Hellmann[3] 28 June 2022 Mutual consent Spain Juan Antonio Pizzi 1 July 2022
Al Wahda Portugal Carlos Carvalhal 3 October 2022 Sacked 9th Spain Manolo Jiménez 5 October 2022
Dibba Al Fujairah Serbia Zoran Popović 8 October 2022 14th France Grégory Dufrennes 8 October 2022
Al Dhafra Serbia Nebojša Vignjević 30 October 2022 14th Serbia Aleksandar Veselinović 30 October 2022
Al Bataeh Brazil Caio Zanardi 4 November 2022 10th Morocco Said Chkhit[4] 5 November 2022
Al Nasr Germany Thorsten Fink 5 November 2022 12th Croatia Goran Tomić[5]
Dibba Al Fujairah France Grégory Dufrennes 14 January 2023 Mutual consent 13th United Arab Emirates Hassan Al Abdouli[6] 15 January 2023
Al Wahda Spain Manolo Jiménez[7] 12 March 2023 Sacked 4th Netherlands Arno Buitenwega 13 March 2023

Notes
1.^ Interim

League table
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Shabab Al Ahli (C) 26 17 6 3 53 25 +28 57 Qualification for AFC Champions League play off round
2 Al Ain 26 16 6 4 67 31 +36 54 Qualification for AFC Champions League group stage[lower-alpha 1]
3 Al Wahda 26 15 7 4 48 26 +22 52
4 Al Wasl 26 13 8 5 53 32 +21 47
5 Al Jazira 26 14 4 8 50 39 +11 46
6 Ajman 26 13 5 8 41 38 +3 44
7 Sharjah 26 12 7 7 42 21 +21 43 Qualification for AFC Champions League play off round[lower-alpha 2]
8 Kalba 26 9 6 11 32 41 −9 33
9 Al Nasr 26 7 6 13 27 43 −16 27
10 Khor Fakkan 26 6 7 13 28 44 −16 25
11 Baniyas 26 6 6 14 34 46 −12 24
12 Al Bataeh 26 5 6 15 30 57 −27 21
13 Dibba Al Fujairah (R) 26 5 5 16 20 44 −24 20 Relegation to UAE Division 1
14 Al Dhafra (R) 26 3 3 20 26 64 −38 12
Source: UPLeague
Rules for classification: [8] 1) points; 2) head-to-head goal difference; 3) head-to-head goals scored; 4) head-to-head away goals scored; 5) goal difference; 6) number of goals scored; 7) number of away goals scored; 8) head-to-head points; 9) fair play ranking[9] 10) draw
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. since Al Ain won the 2021–22 UAE Pro League, they qualified directly to the AFC Champions League group stage meanwhile this seasons league champions will qualify for the play-off round.
  2. since Sharjah won both President's Cups, they qualified for the AFC Champions League play-off round.

Results
Home \ Away AJM AIN BTH DHA JAZ NAS WAH WAS YAS DAF KAL KHF SAD SHR
Ajman 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–1 4–1 2–3 4–2 2–0 3–2 1–0 0–0 1–3 2–3
Al Ain 5–1 5–2 7–0 3–2 0–1 2–3 1–1 2–2 3–0 3–0 2–1 1–1 2–0
Al Bataeh 1–1 2–3 1–1 2–4 2–0 0–4 1–2 3–3 0–1 2–2 2–2 0–6 0–1
Al Dhafra 0–1 1–4 1–2 4–1 1–1 1–3 0–2 2–4 2–1 0–2 1–3 3–2 0–1
Al Jazira 0–1 2–1 3–1 3–2 4–3 0–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–3 3–3
Al Nasr 2–0 1–3 2–2 1–0 0–2 0–1 1–2 1–0 0–1 3–0 1–0 2–2 1–0
Al Wahda 0–1 0–3 2–1 4–2 3–1 4–0 3–3 1–1 3–0 0–1 2–2 1–1 0–0
Al Wasl 2–1 2–3 3–1 4–0 1–2 2–0 2–2 3–0 1–1 2–2 3–0 1–2 1–1
Baniyas 2–3 2–2 0–1 5–0 1–1 1–1 0–1 1–3 0–2 1–2 1–0 1–2 0–4
Dibba Al Fujairah 1–3 0–2 0–1 1–1 0–1 2–1 1–1 0–1 1–4 2–2 1–0 1–2 0–2
Kalba 0–2 2–3 0–2 2–0 2–1 5–3 0–2 1–1 2–1 2–0 1–1 1–2 0–4
Khor Fakkan 2–2 0–3 3–0 4–3 2–4 0–0 0–2 1–5 1–2 1–0 2–1 0–1 1–0
Shabab Al Ahli 1–0 2–1 3–0 2–0 2–1 3–0 2–1 2–2 1–2 5–1 0–0 3–1 0–2
Sharjah 4–0 2–2 3–0 1–0 2–3 1–1 0–1 0–1 3–0 1–1 1–2 3–0 0–0
Source: UPLeague
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
For upcoming matches, an "a" indicates there is an article about the rivalry between the two participants.

    Number of teams by Emirates
    Emirate Number of teams Teams
    1 Emirate of Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi 5 Al Ain, Al Jazira, Al Wahda, Baniyas and Al Dhafra
    2 Emirate of Sharjah Sharjah 4 Sharjah, Kalba, Khor Fakkan and Al Bataeh
    3 Emirate of Dubai Dubai 3 Shabab Al Ahli, Al Nasr and Al Wasl
    4 Emirate of Ajman Ajman 1 Ajman
    Emirate of Fujairah Fujairah Dibba Al Fujairah


    Seasonal statistics

    Positions by round
    Leader and qualification to AFC Champions League Play off round
    qualification to AFC Champions League
    Relegation to UAE First Division League
    Team ╲ Round1234567891011121314151617181920212223242526
    Shabab Al Ahli147577653311211121111111111
    Al Ain73844438787777543322222222
    Al Wahda51010105542222433355444333333
    Al Wasl65733124434644432233454444
    Al Jazira22222376566565666667667675
    Ajman81111116965855356777776776556
    Sharjah31111211143122214555545767
    Kalba139468787678888888888888888
    Al Nasr9468101011121212121212121212121212109999109
    Khor Fakkan1113131411111211111191010910101099911111010910
    Baniyas48991212109910109910999101011101011111111
    Al Bataeh16359891010911111111111111111112121212131212
    Dibba Al Fujairah1214121314141414141413131414141414141414131313121313
    Al Dhafra1012141213131313131314141313131313131313141414141414
    Source: UPLeague

    Top scorers
    As of 15 May 2023[10]
    Rank Player Club Goals
    1 Togo Kodjo Laba Al Ain 28
    2 United Arab Emirates Ali Mabkhout Al Jazira 27
    3 United Arab Emirates Fábio Lima Al Wasl 19
    4 Brazil João Pedro Al Wahda 15
    5 Brazil Lourency Al Bataeh 13
    6 Morocco Walid Azaro Ajman 12
    Tunisia Firas Ben Larbi Ajman
    8 Morocco Soufiane Rahimi Al Ain 11
    Argentina Federico Cartabia Shabab Al Ahli
    Ukraine Andriy Yarmolenko Al Ain
    11 Brazil Caio Lucas Sharjah 9
    Argentina Tomás Chancalay Al Wasl
    United Arab Emirates Ahmed Al-Naqbi Kalba

    Top assists
    As of 14 May 2023[10]
    Rank Player Club Assists
    1 Morocco Soufiane Rahimi Al Ain 11
    Tunisia Firas Ben Larbi Ajman
    3 United Arab Emirates Fábio Lima Al Wasl 10
    4 Togo Kodjo Laba Al Ain 8
    5 Spain Paco Alcácer Sharjah 7
    6 United Arab Emirates Ali Saleh Al Wasl 6
    Romania Alexandru Cicâldău Kalba
    United Arab Emirates Ali Mabkhout Al Jazira
    Syria Omar Khribin Shabab Al Ahli
    Brazil Erik Al Ain
    Netherlands Mohamed Rayhi Al Dhafra

    Clean sheets
    As of 14 May 2023
    Rank Player Club Clean sheets
    1 United Arab Emirates Mohammed Al-Shamsi Al Wahda 9
    2 United Arab Emirates Adel Al-Hosani Sharjah 7
    United Arab Emirates Khalid Eisa Al Ain
    United Arab Emirates Khaled Al-Senani Al Wasl
    3 United Arab Emirates Darwish Bin Habib Sharjah 6
    United Arab Emirates Ali Al-Hosani Ajman
    United Arab Emirates Ali Khasif Al Jazira
    7 United Arab Emirates Eisa Al-Hooti Kalba 5
    United Arab Emirates Ahmed Al-Hosani Khor Fakkan
    United Arab Emirates Hassan Hamza Shabab Al Ahli
    United Arab Emirates Ahmed Shambih Al Nasr

    Hat tricks
    Player For Against Result Date Round
    United Arab Emirates Ali Mabkhout Al Jazira Khor Fakkan 4–2 (A) 9 September 2022 2
    Togo Kodjo Laba4 Al Ain Al Dhafra 7–0 (H) 10 September 2022
    United Arab Emirates Fábio Lima Al Wasl 4–0 (H) 8 October 2022 5
    Brazil Rafael Elias Baniyas Dibba Al Fujarah 4–1 (A) 22 October 2022 7
    United Arab Emirates Ali Mabkhout Al Jazira Al Nasr 4–3 (H) 7 April 2023 22
    Notes

    4 Player scored 4 goals
    (H) – Home team
    (A) – Away team

    References
    1. "فرهاد مجيدي يشعل «إنستغرام» كلباء". Al Bayan. 8 June 2022.
    2. "عبدالعزيز العنبري مدربا لفريق خورفكان". wam. 14 June 2022.
    3. "الوصل ينفصل عن هيلمان.. وبيتزي البديل". Emaratalyoum. 28 June 2022.
    4. "المغربي شخيت يقود البطائح خلفاً للبرازيلي كايو" (in Arabic). Al Bayan. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
    5. "رسميا..غوران توميتش مدربا للنصر" (in Arabic). Al Bayan. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
    6. "دبا يتطلع لانطلاقة جديدة" (in Arabic). Al Khaleej. Retrieved 22 January 2023.
    7. "خسارة الكلاسيكو تطيح بخيمينيز من الوحدة" (in Arabic). Retrieved 12 March 2023.
    8. "Article (15) P.50 of Arabian Gulf League Regulations" (PDF) (in Arabic). Archived from the original (PDF) on 27 August 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
    9. "Fairplay - Arabian Gulf League". uae.agleague.ae. Archived from the original on 27 August 2019. Retrieved 27 August 2019.
    10. "UAE Pro League 2022/23 – Top Scorers & Top Assists". Soccerway.
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