A striking win: when the UAE clinched the Arabian Gulf Cup title for the first time in 2007

The national football team beat Kuwait three goals to two at a match in Abu Dhabi

Emirati teammates celebrate after winning against Kuwait during their 18th Gulf Cup Championship football match in Abu Dhabi, 24 January 2007. United Arab Emirates won the match 3-2 to qualify for theShow more

This picture shows members of the UAE national football team ecstatic as they celebrate their 3-2 win against Kuwait in a match at Mohammed bin Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi for the 18th Arabian Gulf Cup, which took place in January 2007.

Just one week later, they had even more cause to celebrate, as they triumphed 1-0 against Oman in the final at Zayed Sports City Stadium and went on to clinch the title of that year's tournament.

irati striker Ismail Matar, who plays club football for Al Wahda, also claimed the crown of top goalscorer at the tournament – he scored five times, including decisive strikes in the semi-final against Saudi Arabia and then in the final – and was also named the most valuable player in the tournament.

The Arabian Gulf Cup, which is also known as the Gulf Cup of Nations, is a biennial tournament featuring eight member states that form the Arab Gulf Cup Football Federation – that's all six GCC states, plus Iraq and Yemen.

The first tournament took place in 1970, when Kuwait took home the trophy in Bahrain; and the country has gone on to win the tournament a record-holding total of 10 times.

The UAE has won the title twice: in 2007 and again in 2013, when the team beat Iraq 2-1. In the most recent iteration, which was held in December, Bahrain shocked fans when it went home victorious for the first time in the cup's history.