"Burqan Handball" Advances to Asian Competition, "The Colonel" Moves Closer to Title
Burqan secured second place and qualified for the Asian competition, while Kuwait approached the title after defeating Sulaybiyah.
Translated by Qiyas from الراي — Original source
Al-Burqan secured the runners-up spot in the Premier Handball League for the 2025-2026 season with a thrilling 29-28 victory over their direct rival Al-Arabi, in the 19th round held at the Sheikh Saeed Al-Abdullah Complex Hall.
Japanese player Kosuke Yasuhira scored two decisive goals that gave Al-Burqan a two-goal lead with two minutes remaining. However, South Korean player Jeinho Kim scored a goal to narrow the margin for Al-Arabi, though it was not enough to prevent his team’s defeat. Kim was the match’s top scorer with 13 goals.
With this result, Al-Burqan moved up to 19 points from 13 matches, sitting three points ahead of third-placed Al-Ahli, which has played 14 matches and has one game left against Al-Kuwait. Al-Burqan will next face Kazma and Al-Abyad in two upcoming matches.
Having secured second place, Al-Burqan qualified for the 29th Asian Club Handball Championship, scheduled for June 2027, to defend the continental title they won for the first time in their history during their debut appearance at the tournament held in Kuwait last June.
In another match, Al-Kuwait took another step toward retaining the title for the 14th consecutive time and the 16th time in their history, defeating Salibikhaet 33-27. Brazilian player Leonardo Alves da Silva was the top scorer for Salibikhaet with seven goals.
With their 11th win, Al-Kuwait strengthened their lead at the top of the standings with 23 points from 13 matches, four points ahead of Al-Burqan. A victory over Al-Arabi in the 20th round, scheduled for Monday, will officially secure them the title. Meanwhile, Salibikhaet’s tally remained at six points, keeping them in fifth place.
On another note, the Handball Federation announced that the preliminary round of last season’s Federation Cup will begin on Sunday, November 1, with three matches: Al-Arabi versus Al-Qurain, Al-Nasr versus Khaitan, and Al-Yarmouk versus Al-Sahel.
