Four-way promotion battle heats up in Kuwait First Division League

Players vie for the ball during Al-Yarmouk and Sporty match.

KUWAIT CITY, July 30: The race for promotion in the First Division League has become increasingly competitive, with four clubs separated by only a small margin after the completion of the 15th round.

League leader Al-Sahel missed the chance to strengthen its position at the top after being held to a 1-1 draw by Khaitan at Jaber Al-Mubarak Stadium. Despite dropping two points, Al-Sahel remains first with 33 points, while Khaitan climbed to 18 points in fifth place.

Al-Yarmouk capitalised on Al-Sahel’s slip-up, closing the gap to just one point with a 2-1 victory over bottom side Sporty at Nasser Al-Osaimi Stadium. The result moved Al-Yarmouk to 32 points, while Sporty remains at the bottom with three points.

Al-Sulaibikhat stayed firmly in the promotion race after returning to winning form with a comfortable 3-0 triumph over Al-Shamiya. The victory took its tally to 32 points, keeping it level with Al-Yarmouk and within striking distance of the leader.

Meanwhile, Al-Jazeera continued its impressive push for promotion after defeating Burgan 2-0 at Al-Sahel Stadium. The newly promoted side moved to fourth place with 28 points, keeping its hopes alive of securing one of the two available spots in the Premier League.

Burgan, on the other hand, remained sixth with 14 points and saw their promotion hopes officially come to an end, while Al-Shamiya stayed seventh on 10 points.

By Hassan Mosa

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff