Al Sadd are continuing their preparations for the 2026-2027 season at their pre-season camp in Linz, Austria, which began on July 13 and continues until August 7 as they gear up for domestic and continental competitions.

Under Romanian coach Razvan Lucescu, Al Sadd are undergoing a comprehensive training programme that includes four friendly matches, aimed at improving the players’ readiness and helping them reach their peak performance before the start of season. In their first friendly, they lost 1-2 to Czech club SK Sigma Olomouc.

The camp includes a total of 26 players, such as Roberto Firmino, Akram Afif, Claudinho, Paulo Otavio, Abdessamed Bounacer, Augustin Soria, Giovani Henrique, Rafa Mujica, Guilherme Torres, Hassan Al Haydous, Meshaal Barsham, Saad Al Dossari, Boualem Khoukhi, Tarek Salman and Hashim Ali besides technical and administrative staff.

Al Sadd enter the new season on a high after winning the 2025-2026 Doha Bank Stars League title (third successive title and 19th overall) following a 3-2 victory over Al Shamal in the final round of competition. In the process, The Wolves also enjoyed a 10-match winning streak, the longest by any team last season.

Al Sadd finished with 45 points from 14 wins, three draws and five defeats, while scoring 56 goals and conceding 30.

Lucescu affirmed that Al Sadd are one of the biggest clubs in Asia and the region, adding that the team aspires to compete for all titles in the new season, most notably AFC) Champions League Elite and Amir Cup, while maintaining their identity and attacking style on the field.

Last season also saw Akram being crowned the Best Player at Qatar Football Association (QFA) Awards for 2025-2026 season, while Al Sadd bagged the Best Fans Award. They also won the Qatar-UAE Super Cup’s Super Shield by beating Shabab Al Ahli 3-2.

Al Sadd will open their 2026-2027 season Doha Bank Stars League campaign against Al Ahli at the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium on August 22.