UAE reach the main qualifying round for the Asia Cup

The national team has qualified for the main qualifying round of the 2025 FIBA Asia Cup after the second window, played in Qatar. The UAE beat Kuwait 68-67 in their first game, lost the second 82-74 to Iraq, then produced a strong performance to beat Palestine 74-51 in the third and final game of Group E in the second qualifying round.

The UAE, Palestine, Iraq and Qatar all advanced from the stage to the main qualifiers for the Asia Cup finals.

The UAE finished the round on eight points, level with Qatar and Palestine.

The preliminary qualifiers, played over two rounds, involved 18 teams split evenly between the western and eastern regions, with eight qualifying for the main round — four from each region — to join the 16 teams already through by virtue of having played the 2022 Asia Cup finals.

The national team performed well throughout and proved its quality, returning to competitive Asian basketball.