Photo courtesy of Ahly SC
In a Wednesday statement, the Cairo giants said refereeing mistakes remain “a black mark” on the competition, accusing Wafaa of decisions that violated the laws of the game, including failing to award what the club described as a clear penalty.
The club also alleged that the referee behaved inappropriately towards players both verbally and physically during and after the match.
Ahly outlined four key demands in their complaint, including a request to access and publicly disclose the audio communication between the referee and the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) during the review of the disputed incident, in the interest of transparency.
The club further called for an investigation into what they described as arbitrary disciplinary decisions taken against their players after the match, warning that such actions pose a threat to team members.
Ahly also questioned the decision to appoint Wafaa for the fixture, noting that he had previously officiated the same matchup earlier in the season and made similar errors. They highlighted that he had returned from officiating a youth tournament in Libya only hours before the game.
The club concluded by reserving their right to pursue further action against the referee before the relevant authorities.
The controversy stems from a stoppage-time incident in which Ahly appealed for a penalty after the ball struck Ceramica player Ahmed Hany's hand following a cross from Yassin Marei. Play was halted for several minutes for a VAR review before the referee waved play on.
The draw left Ahly third in the table on 41 points, five behind leaders Zamalek and two adrift of second-placed Pyramids FC.
They are set to face Smouha on Saturday, 11 April, in the second round of the league’s title-deciding phase.
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