Ahly rejects participation in any new local tournaments, but open to Super Cup

Ahram Online , Tuesday 29 Aug 2023

Ahly notified the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) on Tuesday that they will not be able to participate in any new tournaments because of their busy schedule next season, but remained open to participating in the Super Cup provided the format remains the same.

Ahly s players celebrate with the trophy of the Egyptian Super Cup after winning over Zamalek at the Hazza bin Zayed stadium in al-Ain on October 28, 2022. AFP

The EFA announced in May that it will create a new tournament under the name of the Super Cup for Champions to replace the old Super Cup.

The new format would see the Egyptian Premier League champions and runners-up, Egypt Cup winners, and Egyptian League Cup winners compete in a round-robin tournament instead of the single-legged tournament contested between the league champion and cup winner.

Ahly is the Super Cup title holder after beating Pyramids FC in May, who replaced a forfeited Zamalek. Under the Super Cup rules, if a team withdraws from the competition they will be banned from the tournament for one year and incur a EGP 500,000 fine.

However in their Tuesday statement, the Red Devils inquired about the dates of the Super Cup provided that it remains a continuation of previous editions and subject to the same regulations applied in previous years.

The EFA signed in July a four-year deal with Abu Dhabi Sports Council to host the Super Cup of Champions.

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