This week, Salisbury FC is making the journey to Kuwait, and the man who owns the club says his English non-league side has a larger following there than several Premier League teams have back in the United Kingdom.
The National League South club announced a five-day trip that includes a match against Kuwait’s most decorated team, Al Qadsia, on Wednesday. The squad returns on Thursday to play Saturday’s FA Cup third qualifying round against Dulwich Hamlet. Owner Ali Alhamad purchased Salisbury in 2025, and the trip continues a growing relationship between the club and Kuwait.
The Chant From The Mac
The trip began with a familiar scene at The Mac Stadium in Salisbury. After Saturday’s 2-0 win against Folkestone Invicta, the players went to embrace the fans in the Andrews Terrace. Among the usual applause came a chant that isn’t part of the club’s regular repertoire.
The fans of the National League South club chanted “Kuwait away ole, ole,”.
The audience responded with added excitement. Before long, they would be heading to the Middle East, and the clock was already ticking — within 24 hours.
Luke Russe is the player that Salisbury’s “Straight away we all said, ‘yeah, we’re all in,’” explains.
“It’s a unique opportunity and as players, we are so thankful to everybody involved in making this trip happen. I’ve been involved in this level for a long time now and I’ve never had an experience like it.”
A Match Against A Trophy Factory
Al Qadsia is one of Kuwait’s most successful clubs, with more than 50 trophies to its name. The Mohammad Al-Hamad Stadium holds 22,000 spectators, more than five times the capacity of Salisbury’s home ground.
“We’d love to win the game,” says Russe. “But at the same time I think it’s more about the experience and about the club as a whole, going over there, living that way of life and experiencing the game.”
Visits to local restaurants, schools and universities are part of the journey, along with a question-and-answer session where locals can learn how an English football club works. Alhamad thinks the experience will open the players’ eyes.
“It will help the players themselves with opening up their horizons into different cultures, different countries, experiencing other footballing nations and other styles of football,” he says.
The Popularity In Kuwait
The club’s following in Kuwait is substantial. Four of Salisbury’s sponsors are from the country, including the front-of-shirt sponsor for a company that created Kuwait’s first Sharia-compliant digital bank. The training kit represents a popular Acai company that can only be bought in Kuwait.
The official Arabic account for Salisbury FC on Instagram boasts over 14,000 followers, a number that trails just slightly behind the club’s official English profile.
A small gathering of supporters met the squad when it reached Kuwait.
“I would even go further than saying that Salisbury in Kuwait is bigger than many of the Premier League teams in the UK,” says Alhamad.
“So I am not exaggerating when I do say that it is a huge name in Kuwait but what’s more important than the size is we are contributing a lot to the local community here in Kuwait and to the children and the future of the football in Kuwait.”
The Players Said Yes
Alhamad was taken aback by how quickly the players responded. Every member of the squad, with the exception of Jaiden Bartolo, who is on international duty, agreed to go within an hour.
Salisbury gets all the money from ticket sales and advertising, so the trip works as a financial move for the club.
The club has established a summer camp in the countryside and held a trial session at which the top three players worked with the first team during pre-season.
The name Alhamad is the source for the reference “It’s quite simple in my mind. If you do what other people do, you’ll just get the same results everyone else does,”.
“Football in England, especially in the non-league, is a brutal business. So just throwing in money to the football club with the aim of getting promotion is fool’s gold, in my opinion.”
The owner sees a wider path for growth.
Building something properly means starting at the bottom and working your way up, and limiting yourself to one market — the city or town you are in — is a narrow approach.
“With social media and the avenues we have, such as being in Kuwait and the Gulf and Arab regions. That’s a huge untapped market that is thirsty for English football.”
A Test On Return
The Premier League draws a large audience in Kuwait, while non-league football is hardly known at all there.
“That’ll be some story,” Alhamad says.
Kuwait’s expansion gives Salisbury FC a chance that does not often come to a National League South side. Keeping The Whites firmly rooted in the local community in the city will matter just as much, though, especially since the FA Cup on Saturday marks their first test back home.
“I have grown to love it and love the people of Salisbury and the towns around it,” says Alhamad.
“It’s a great place to be. And that’s what I’m really focusing on not just in a trip here in Kuwait, also in our heart and soul, our fans, our community, which is Salisbury.”
What The Numbers Show
| Club | Home Ground | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Salisbury FC | The Mac | — |
| Al Qadsia | Mohammad Al-Hamad Stadium | 22,000 |
The contrast demonstrates the disparity in size. Salisbury’s home crowds pale beside those that turn up to watch Al Qadsia, which draws more than five times as many spectators.
More than just a result, the journey connects two communities that are separated by distance.
Source material: “Why Salisbury are 'bigger than many Premier League teams' in Kuwait,” the BBC.
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