Ahly’s General Manager Mahmoud Allam has appealed to fans to go to the Egyptian Army Stadium in Alexandria for Saturday’s African Super Cup against AC Leopards following poor ticket sales.

The Red Devils, who defied the odds to win the Champions League last year despite the lengthy stoppage of Egyptian football, will be eyeing a record-extending fifth Super Cup triumph when they host the Congolese side.

Domestic matches are still being played behind closed doors due to security concerns but Egyptian authorities have allowed limited fan attendance in continental encounters.

“Ahly are waiting for their fans to support the club and its technical staff to win the African Super Cup,” Allam said in a statement on the club’s official website.

“The amount of the tickets which were sold does not live up to our expectations. Our fans have always supported the team in such games.”

Ahly have also launched an online campaign to persuade their supporters to flock the Egyptian Army Stadium, which is located on the outskirts of Alexandria, around 200 km from the capital where the club are based.

Ultras Ahlawy, a group of hardcore Ahly fans, have boycotted the team’s matches since last year’s infamous Port Said disaster.

They said they would not return to the stands unless the perpetrators of the tragedy were brought to justice. Twenty-one Masry club supporters were given death sentences last month for their role in Egypt’s worst-ever football disaster.

The rest of the defendants, who include nine security officials, will learn their fate on 9 March.

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