Salisbury travel to Kuwait to face Al Qadsia as owner pushes commercial link
September 29, 2026 16:20
Salisbury FC flew to Kuwait for a five-day visit that will see them face Kuwaiti heavyweight Al Qadsia on Wednesday before returning to England to contest the FA Cup third qualifying round against Dulwich Hamlet on Saturday. The trip is part of an ongoing connection between the club and Kuwait under owner Ali Alhamad, who bought Salisbury in 2025.
KEY CONTEXT
The visit combines on-field and off-field activity. The players will meet fans, visit restaurants, try local food and coffee, visit schools and universities, and hold a question-and-answer session explaining how an English football club operates from the owner’s perspective. All ticket sales and advertising revenue from the Kuwait fixtures will go to Salisbury.
Al Qadsia are described in the trip announcement as one of Kuwait’s most successful teams, with more than 50 trophies. Salisbury will play at the Mohammad Al-Hamad Stadium, which holds 22,000 spectators — more than five times the capacity of Salisbury’s The Mac.
Commercial ties to Kuwait are already established: four of Salisbury’s sponsors are Kuwaiti businesses, including the front-of-shirt sponsor that created the country’s first Sharia-compliant digital bank, and the training kit sponsor is a locally sold Acai company. Salisbury’s official Arabic Instagram account has more than 14,000 followers, only slightly fewer than its official English profile.
PLAYERS AND OWNER
Midfielder Luke Russe described the trip as “a unique opportunity” and said the squad were thankful to everyone involved. Owner Ali Alhamad, a Kuwait businessman, said Salisbury is “a huge name in Kuwait” and added: “I would even go further than saying that Salisbury in Kuwait is bigger than many of the Premier League teams in the UK.”
The whole squad agreed to go within an hour of the invitation, with the exception of Jaiden Bartolo, who was unavailable due to international duty.
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT
Salisbury return to England on Thursday to prepare for Saturday’s FA Cup third qualifying round tie with Dulwich Hamlet.