Players fighting for the ball.

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 3: The First Division Handball League gets underway today at Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Hall, with two opening matches: Al-Sahel vs Khaitan at 5:00 p.m. and Al-Yarmouk vs Al-Fahaheel at 6:30 p.m.

The league features six teams: Al-Yarmouk, Al-Qurain, Khaitan, Al-Fahaheel, Al-Sahel, and the Youth National Team. Matches are played in a round-robin format, with each team facing opponents four times (home and away twice). The Youth National Team is an exception, playing each team twice only, with its points counting toward the opponent’s total but not affecting the official standings.

The First Division champion will be promoted directly to the Premier League, while the runner-up will face the seventh-placed team in the Premier League in a playoff. The team in last place in the Premier League will be relegated to the First Division.

In the opening round of the 58th Premier Handball League, Burgan narrowly defeated Qadsia 25-24 (first half 13-12) in a closely contested match attended by a strong crowd. Defending champion Kuwait Club cruised past Al-Nasr 41-23 (first half 20-10), claiming its first two points in the hunt for a 16th league title.

By Khaled Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff