Football club
Al Qabila FC (Arabic: القبيلة lit. "the tribe") commonly referred to as Al Qabila, is a football club based in Dubai, UAE. From the year 2024, the club competes in the UAE Third Division League, the fourth tier of Emirati football.
Al Qabila FC was created by professional footballer Soheil Varahram[1] and Daniyal Sheikh.[who?] Using YouTube, TikTok and other social media platforms, the club was formed in 365 days. On October 18, 2023, the name of the club was chosen to be Al Qabila, meaning "the tribe" in Arabic.
The Al Qabila FC concept was started on October 15, 2023, by Soheil Varahram. Using YouTube, TikTok and other social media platforms, the club signed their club license with FIFA within the first 180 days.[citation needed] On April 18, 2024, they chose Steven Taylor as the head coach. On April 23, the kit was chosen and Jerseybird was selected as the manufacturer. The team was sponsored by SupremeFx. On April 25, the team partnered with Fleetwood United FC in the UAE First division. On May 30, 2024, the team made connections[clarification needed] with Rapid Wien. On July 1, 2024, Sheikh Ahmed bin Sultan bin Khalifa Al Nahyan was appointed as the club president. The Youth Academy was announced on July 12, 2024, to be formed in September. On July 21, 2024, the team announced Antonios Assad as the strength and conditioning coach.
Al Qabila's first competitive fixture was played on September 22, 2024. The team were victorious 3–1 over TFA Dubai, with Richie Danquah scoring the team's first competitive goal.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
On January 3, 2024, a contest was held for the team to scout 5 new players using hashtag, #RoadToAlQabilaFC. On May 1, they chose three players with a $10,000 prize. They scouted players in locations such as South Africa, Canada, United Arab Emirates, Spain, Portugal and India.