Al Ahli v Auckland FC: Starting XIs confirmed for FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2026 opener
Al Ahli will host Auckland FC at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah in a first-round fixture of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2026 on Wednesday, August 26, with both teams naming their starting lineups ahead of the match.
The fixture opens the six-team tournament and will see Al Ahli enter as the reigning AFC Champions League Elite champions and clear favourites under head coach Marino Pusic. Al Ahli have won their opening two Saudi Pro League matches, beating Al Diriyah 1-0 and Abha Club 4-0, with Ivan Toney having scored a hat-trick in their most recent league game; new signing Francisco Trincao also scored against Abha. Auckland FC come into the tie as OFC Professional League winners and arrive following a 2-0 pre-season friendly defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.
Al Ahli’s starting XI is: Edouard Mendy; Mohammed Yousef, Merih Demiral, Roger Ibanez, Zakaria Hawsawi; Ziyad Al Johani, Valentin Atangana; Francisco Trincao, Eduard Sperstian, Galeno; Ivan Toney. The substitutes listed by Al Ahli are Abdulrahman Al-Sanbi (gk), Mohammed Sulaiman, Firas Albrikan, Meshal Al Mutairi, Artem Bondarenko, Matheus Goncalves, Abdullah Radif, Saad Yaslam, Rayan Hamed, Saleh Abu Al-Shamat, Naif Masoud and Ricardo Mathias. The club released the personnel ahead of kick-off via its pre-match announcement.
Auckland FC’s starting XI is: Michael Woud; Hiroki Sakai, Aaron Calver, Nando Pijnaker, Francis De Vries; Logan Rogerson, Daniel Normann, Felipe Gallagos, Lachlan Brook; Lachlan Bayliss, Sam Cosgrove. Their bench comprises Joseph Knowles (gk), Eli Jones (gk), Cameron Howieson, Callan Elliot, Marley Leulai, Ronan Wynne, Aaron Cartwright, Luka Robert Vicelich, Jonty Bidois and Van Fitzharris. Auckland shared the lineup with a brief pre-match message on their social channels.
The match is scheduled for Wednesday, August 26, 2026, at the King Abdullah Sports City Stadium in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. For further updates Khel Now has invited followers to its Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube pages and to download the Khel Now Android and iOS apps, as well as join its WhatsApp and Telegram communities. The piece was prepared by Sushruta, who has spent over two years covering football and reports on a range of domestic and international competitions; when not following matches he says he can usually be found binge-watching movies or reading.
Kick-off is scheduled for 11:30 PM IST. The winner of Wednesday’s match will win the African-Asian-Pacific Cup Play-off and progress to the second round of the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2026.