Gulf Cup of Nations

The Arabian Gulf Cup, also referred to as the Gulf Cup of Nations or simply the Gulf Cup, is a competition run by the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation and is contested by its eight member nations. Founded in 1970, the tournament often takes place biennially but has been staged once every three to four years on occasions. The eight participants are split into two groups of four for the first round in a single round-robin format. The top two teams from each group move on to the knockout stage, with both the semi-finals and final being one-off ties.