Egypt’s two-time champion Zamalek and previous winner USM Alger of Algeria are set to clash in the final of the TotalEnergies CAF Confederation Cup.
Zamalek secured their place in the final after a 0-0 draw against CR Belouizdad in Cairo on Friday, progressing 1-0 on aggregate following their first leg victory in Algiers.
USM Alger booked their place in the final after a hard-fought 1-1 draw away to Olympique Safi of Morocco on Sunday, progressing on away goals following crowd trouble that delayed the semi-final second leg fixture for more than an hour.
The first leg of the two-game final series will be played on 9 May in Algeria and the second leg on 16 May in Cairo.
In front of a sizeable crowd of 45,000 in Cairo International Stadium, disciplined defences from both teams made for few scoring opportunities but Zamalek thought they had broken the deadlock in the 25th minute. Abdallah Al-Said’s free kick into the box was picked up by Palestinian striker Oday Dabbagh who headed home to the left of goal. However, the goal was overturned for offside following a VAR review.
Zamalek threatened again in the 35th minute after a loose ball was punched away by Farid Chaâl but not very far, with defender Mohamed Ismail firing low to miss the goal by inches.
Zamalek nearly scored in the 63rd minute when Nasser Mansi, rejuvenated after being chosen for the Egyptian national team, collected a cross from Brazilian Juan Bezerra but pushed the ball too far ahead.
It was Belouizdad’s turn to miss a golden chance when Zamalek goalkeeper Al-Mahdi Suleiman spread to block a sure breakaway goal by substitute Lotfi Boussouar following a neat give and go 10 minutes from time.
The Egyptian side have now reached their third final in the competition and a second in the last three seasons. They won in 2019 and 2024.
Cafonline provided more key statistics from the match:
Belouizdad failed to score in each of their last three games in the Confederation Cup, after finding the net in each of their first seven matches in the competition. Indeed, Belouizdad’s lone shot on target in this game only came in the 81st minute.
Zamalek kept a clean sheet in each of their last seven semi-final games in the Confederation Cup, the longest ever run without conceding at this stage in the history of the competition.
Zamalek either conceded none in seven games or one in nine games across their last 16 games in the tournament, with the last side to score more than once against Zamalek being Enyimba in December 2024 (2-2).
Mansi attempted the most shots of any player in the game with six while also no Zamalek player made more tackles (four) or won more duels (eight) than the Egyptian striker.
Zamalek’s Hossam Abdel-Maguid and Belouizdad’s Houcine Benayada were the only two outfield players to start all 10 games in the Confederation Cup this season and not be substituted even once.
Zamalek have been in strong form not just continentally but domestically, too, leading the Egyptian Premier League with 46 points, two ahead of second place Pyramids FC with five games left.
They are also the only Egyptian side remaining in African competitions following the elimination of Masri from the Confederation Cup and both Pyramids and Ahly from the CAF Champions League.
Before the result of the Olympique Safi-USM Alger second leg match was known, Zamalek coach Motamed Gamal said that his team’s main target was winning the CAF Confederation Cup title after reaching the final, stressing his full respect for the opponent.
“Our main target is to win the title. We respect our upcoming opponent whether it will be Olympique de Safi or USM Alger,” Gamal said.
At a press conference after Friday’s match, he urged Zamalek fans not to feel bad about not winning even though the draw was good enough to reach the final.
“We had several scoring chances in the first half and also a disallowed goal, but the most important thing was achieving the target and reaching the final,” he added.
Gamal added that the away win in the first leg made the mission easier in Cairo.
After Friday’s game, Cairo Stadium was also the site where former Zamalek midfielder Tarek Hamed said his final goodbye to the fans.
The 37-year-old bone-crunching tackler, who descended onto the pitch for a victory lap, spent eight years with the Cairo giants, helping guide them to three league titles, five Egypt Cups, two Egyptian Super Cups, one CAF Confederation Cup, and one CAF Super Cup.
Hamed scored six goals in 292 appearances across all competitions during his time with Zamalek.
He made 58 appearances for Egypt, scoring one goal.
He also participated in the 2018 World Cup.
Hamed earlier played for Egyptian clubs Talae Al-Geish and Smouha and, after Zamalek, joined Saudi clubs Ittihad Jeddah and Damac FC.
In the other semi-final second leg, played at Stade El Massira in Morocco, the game was delayed for 80 minutes after crowd trouble erupted before kick-off, as fans invaded the pitch before security forces restored order.
Ahmed Khaldi put USM Alger ahead from the penalty spot deep into first-half stoppage time after a handball decision, before Moussa Kone equalised for the hosts with a header in the 75th minute.
The penalty ultimately proved decisive after the first encounter ended goalless in Algiers.
Safi were unable to find the winner despite shooting 41 times in the two games.
For USM Alger, the result marks a significant milestone. They have now reached the Confederation Cup final for the second time in their history, becoming the first Algerian club to achieve the feat twice, having previously lifted the trophy in the 2022-23 season.
Before the second leg, USM Alger had kept six clean sheets in nine matches, the best record in the competition this season.
* A version of this article appears in print in the 23 April, 2026 edition of Al-Ahram Weekly.
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