2018–19 UAE Pro League


The 2018–19 UAE Pro League was the 45th edition with Al Ain being the defending champions after winning their 13th title last year. Both Baniyas and Kalba returned to the pro league after getting relegated back at 2017. After losing Al Shabab and Dubai last season the league has been reduced to 12 teams. This year they needed to get back to 14 teams so they held a relegation play off between bottom two teams of last year and the 3rd and 4th placed teams of the 2nd division. Sharjah set a record of the longest unbeaten run in a UAE Pro League season for 23 games before losing to Al Wasl 3–2. In 15 May 2019, Sharjah won their first title since 1996 after beating Al Wahda 3–2, this is the first time a team outside of Dubai and Abu Dhabi has won the league since the 1996. On the 26 May, Emirates and Dibba Al Fujairah were relegated after a fixed match between Shabab Al Ahli and Fujairah favoured Fujairah and got them out of relegation. The Emirates demanded that the UAEFA investigate on the match between Shabab Al Ahli and Fujairah, questioning the legitimacy of the two penalties that was rewarded to Fujairah and the two goals that was disallowed for Shabab Al Ahli. However the UAE court has later rejected their complaint and the team got relegated

Team Changes

To Division 1

Relegated to UAE Division 1
Promoted to UAE Pro League

ClubHome cityStadiumCapacity
AjmanAjmanAjman Stadium
Al AinAl-AinHazza Bin Zayed Stadium
Al DhafraMadinat ZayedAl Dhafra Stadium
Al JaziraAbu Dhabi City Mohammad Bin Zayed Stadium
Al NasrDubai Al-Maktoum Stadium
Al WahdaAbu Dhabi City Al Nahyan Stadium
Al WaslDubai Zabeel Stadium
BaniyasAbu Dhabi City Baniyas Stadium
Dibba Al-FujairahFujairah City*Fujairah Club Stadium*
EmiratesRAK CityEmirates Club Stadium
FujairahFujairah CityFujairah Club Stadium
KalbaKalbaIttihad Kalba Stadium
Shabab Al Ahli-DubaiDubai Dubai Club Stadium
SharjahSharjahSharjah Stadium

* =

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.
TeamHead CoachCaptainKit ManufacturerShirt Sponsor
Ajman Ayman Elramady Rashed MalallahHummelAjman Bank
Al Ain Juan Carlos Garrido Ismail AhmedNikeFirst Gulf Bank
Al Dhafra Vuk Rašović Ahmed AliAdidasRuwais
Al Jazira Damiën Hertog Ali KhasifAdidasIPIC
Al Nasr Beñat San José Álvaro NegredoNikeEmirates NBD
Al Wahda Henk ten Cate Ismail MatarAdidasCadillac
Al Wasl Laurențiu Reghecampf CaioNew BalanceEmaar
Baniyas Krunoslav Jurčić Yousif JaberAdidasSecure Engineering
Dibba Al-Fujairah Mohamed Al Khaddeim Driss FettouhiuhlsportUnknown
Emirates Jalal Qaderi Ahmed Al-ShajiuhlsportAl Naeem City Center
Fujairah Abdulla Masfer Hilal SaeedNikeAsas
Kalba Fabio Viviani Mansor AbbasErreàUnknown
Shabab Al-Ahli Rodolfo Arruabarrena Majed NaserNikeNakheel
Sharjah Abdulaziz Mohamed Shahin AbdulrahmanAdidasSaif Zone

Managerial changes

Foreign players

All teams could register as many foreign players as they want, but could only use four on the field each game.
  • Players name in bold indicates the player is registered during the mid-season transfer window.
  • Players in italics were out of squad or left club within the season, after pre-season transfer window, or in the mid-season transfer window, and at least had one appearance.
ClubPlayer 1Player 2Player 3Player 4Former Players
Ajman Vander Vieira Adil Hermach Stanley Ohawuchi Mame Baba Thiam
Al Ain Caio Tsukasa Shiotani Rúben Ribeiro Marcus Berg Hussein El Shahat
Al Dhafra Diego Rômulo Amine Attouchi Nicolás Milesi Hélder Guedes
Al Jazira Leonardo Sébastien Siani Ernest Asante Nacer Barazite
Al Nasr Junior Dutra Ronnie Fernández Joan Oumari Álvaro Negredo Iury
Yohan Cabaye
Marquinhos Gabriel
Samuel
Al Wahda Sebastián Tagliabué Leonardo Rim Chang-woo Mourad Batna
Al Wasl Caio Fabio Lima Ronaldo Mendes Vinícius Lima Oh Ban-suk
Baniyas Róbson Michael Ortega Leroy George Pedro Conde
Dibba Al-Fujairah Diogo Acosta Yaseen Al-Bakhit Yousef Al-Rawashdeh Driss Fettouhi Guilherme Schettine
Yahya Jabrane
Masoud Juma
Emirates Marcao Kaio Cheick Diabaté Saber Khalifa Aboubacar Sylla
Bernie Ibini-Isei
Bakare Kone
Fujairah Mohamed Benyettou Omar Kossoko Fernando Gabriel Samuel Jorge
Ronaldo Mendes
Lee Seung-hee
Kalba Myke Tommy Tobar Balázs Dzsudzsák Giovanni Sio Florentin Matei
Raheem Lawal
Shabab Al-Ahli Emiliano Vecchio Mauro Díaz Jaime Ayoví Henrique Luvannor
Sharjah Igor Coronado Welliton Ryan Mendes Otabek Shukurov

League table

Results

Season statistics

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Sebastián TagliabuéAl Wahda27
2 Ali MabkhoutAl Jazira20
2 WellitonSharjah20
4 Pedro CondeBaniyas18
5 Igor CoronadoSharjah17
6 Álvaro NegredoAl Nasr16
7 Mohamed BenyettouFujairah14
8 CaioAl Wasl13
8 Fábio LimaAl Wasl13
8 LeonardoAl Wahda13
11 LeonardoAl Jazira12
11 Henrique LuvannorShabab Al Ahli12
11 Jaime AyovíShabab Al Ahli12

Number of teams by Emirates