did not advance beyond in the first round in any of those appearances. In 2015 they finished second in their group and advanced to the Knockout stage for the first time since 1996. They knocked out the defending Asian Cup champions Japan in the quarter finals before losing in the semi finals to Australia. They then beat Iraq in the Third Place match. The UAE has hosted the Asian Cup for the second time in 2019. The UAE started the group stages by finishing first right above Thailand and Bahrain, they would beat Kyrgyzstan at extra time and knock out the defending Asian Cup champions, Australia, in the quarter finals twice in a row and would lose in the semi finals to Qatar making it the second time in a row the Emiratis would lose in the semi finals. Some threw shoes and bottles at the Qatari team and some booed the Qatari national anthem. World Cup The UAE have qualified for the FIFA World Cup only once, appearing at the 1990 tournament. They were placed into Group D alongside leading European teams West Germany and Yugoslavia as well as South Americans Colombia. The team lost all three matches, 2–0 to Colombia, 5–1 to West Germany and 4–1 to Yugoslavia. UAFA UAE are also members of the Union of Arab Football Associations (UAFA) and take part in their competitions. This avenue of competition had provided the UAE with two international trophies, first being the 18th Arabian Gulf Cup which they hosted and won and the second being the 21st Arabian Gulf Cup which was held in Bahrain. Other teams Both the under-19s and the Under-17s have been champions, the former winning the AFC tournament in 2008 and the latter the Gulf tournament in 2009. A women's team also competes. Club The leading UAE club sides compete in the annual AFC Champions League. Al-Ain became the sole UAE team to win the competition in the 2002-03 season, defeating Thailand's BEC Tero Sasana 2–1 on aggregate in a two legged final. The club reached the final again in 2005 but lost to the Saudi club Al Ittihad. Ten years later in 2015, Al Ahli would become the second UAE club to reach the final only to lose 0–1 on aggregate to Guangzhou Evergrande, a year later Al Ain will reach the final for the third time in 2016 only to lose to