2018 CAF Champions League Final
7 November Stadium hosted the podium where ES Tunis lifted the trophy
Event2018 CAF Champions League
Al Ahly Espérance de Tunis
Egypt Tunisia
3 4
on aggregate
First leg
Al Ahly Espérance de Tunis
3 1
Date2 November 2018 (2018-11-02)
VenueBorg El Arab Stadium, Alexandria
RefereeMehdi Abid Charef (Algeria)
Attendance60,000
WeatherPartly Cloudy
23 °C (73 °F)
Second leg
Espérance de Tunis Al Ahly
3 0
Date9 November 2018 (2018-11-09)
VenueStade Olympique de Radès, Tunis
RefereeBamlak Tessema Weyesa (Ethiopia)
Attendance60,000

The 2018 CAF Champions League Final was the final of the 2018 CAF Champions League, the 54th edition of Africa's premier club football tournament organized by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), and the 22nd edition under the current CAF Champions League title.

The final was contested in two-legged home-and-away format between Al Ahly from Egypt and Espérance de Tunis from Tunisia. The first leg was hosted by Al-Ahly on 2 November 2018, while the second leg was hosted by Espérance de Tunis at the Stade Olympique de Radès in Radès on 9 November 2018.

Espérance de Tunis won the final 4–3 on aggregate for their third CAF Champions League title.[1][2] As winners, they earned the right to represent the CAF at the 2018 FIFA Club World Cup, entering at the second round, as well as play in the 2019 CAF Super Cup against the winner of the 2018 CAF Confederation Cup.[3]

Teams

In the following table, finals until 1996 were in the African Cup of Champions Club era, since 1997 were in the CAF Champions League era.

Team Zone Previous finals appearances (bold indicates winners)
Egypt Al Ahly UNAF (North Africa) 11 (1982, 1983, 1987, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2017)
Tunisia Espérance de Tunis UNAF (North Africa) 6 (1994, 1999, 2000, 2010, 2011, 2012)

Background

Al-Ahly are the most successful club in Egypt and Africa with eight titles, winning eight (1982, 1987, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013) and losing three (1983, 2007, 2017). Al-Ahly were playing their twelfth and second consecutive final.[4]

Espérance de Tunis had reached the final six times before, more than any other Tunisian side, winning two (1994, 2011) and losing four (1999, 2000, 2010, 2012). Espérance de Tunis were playing their seventh final and the first since 2012.[4]

The two sides had previously played 18 matches in African competitions. The first meetings between the two sides took place in the 1990 African Cup of Champions Clubs round of 16, where Espérance de Tunis beat Al-Ahly on penalties after the home and away matches ended 0–0. The most recent meetings between the clubs had taken place in the 2018 CAF Champions League group stage, where Al-Ahly's home match ended 0–0, and then Espérance de Tunis lost 0–1 at home to Al-Ahly on a Walid Azaro goal.[5]

Venues

Borg El Arab Stadium

Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria, Egypt hosted the first leg.

The Borg El Arab Stadium is a stadium commissioned in 2006 in the Mediterranean Sea resort of Borg El Arab; 25 km west of Alexandria, Egypt. It is the largest stadium in Egypt and the second largest in Africa (after FNB Stadium in Johannesburg) with a capacity of 86,000[6] and is an all-seater. It is also the 27th largest stadium in the world, and the 9th largest association football stadium in the world. It is located on the Cairo-Alexandria desert highway 10 km from Borg El Arab Airport and 15 km from Alexandria's city centre. A running track runs around the pitch, and the ground has four large floodlights. Only one stand is covered by a roof.

The stadium is 145 feddans, is surrounded by a fence which is 3 km long, an internal road network its long is 6 km, a parking lot which could fit 5000 cars and 200 bus beside an airstrip, there are 136 electronic entrances. The main cabin is covered by an umbrella which covers 35% of the stadium total area, and it is considered the biggest umbrella in the Middle East. Its length is 200 m, its dimension is 60 m and its area is 12,000 m2, which is equal to 3 feddans.

The stadium is air-conditioned and that condition includes the clothes chambers, the salons and entrances, also the stadium includes 8 elevators for broadcasters, handicapped, services and important persons. There are 2 sub-stadiums for training and each ground can hold 2000 spectators, includes 2 locker rooms and a stadium for Athletics. The stadium also includes a hotel for 200 guests which is air-conditioned and has a swimming pool, gym and a department building which contains 80 people. The stadium includes a building which contains 300 presses. This building includes cabinets for broadcasters, entrances for emergency, ambulance cars, 39 and cafeterias, 337 bathrooms which classified to 33 bathrooms for women and 8 bathrooms for the handicapped.

Stade Olympique de Radès

Stade Olympique de Radès in Radès, Tunisia hosted the second leg.

The Stade Olympique de Radès is a multi-purpose stadium in Radès, Tunisia about 10 kilometers south-east of the city center of Tunis, in the center of the Olympic City. It is currently used mostly for football matches and it also has facilities for athletics. The stadium holds 60,000 and was built in 2001 for the 2001 Mediterranean Games and is considered to be one of the best stadiums in Africa. The stadium was built for the 2001 Mediterranean Games, the 60,000-seat covered area covers 13,000 m2 and consists of a central area, 3 adjoining grounds, 2 warm-up rooms, 2 paintings and an official stand of 7,000 seats. The press gallery is equipped with 300 desks.

Road to the final

Note: In all results below, the score of the finalist is given first (H: home; A: away).

Egypt Al Ahly Round Tunisia Espérance de Tunis
Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg Qualifying rounds Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg
Bye Preliminary round Mauritania ASAC Concorde 6–1 1–1 (A) 5–0 (H)
Gabon CF Mounana 7–1 4–0 (H) 3–1 (A) First round Kenya Gor Mahia 1–0 0–0 (A) 1–0 (H)
Opponent Result Group stage Opponent Result
Tunisia Espérance de Tunis 0–0 (H) Matchday 1 Egypt Al Ahly 0–0 (A)
Uganda KCCA 0–2 (A) Matchday 2 Botswana Township Rollers 4–1 (H)
Botswana Township Rollers 3–0 (H) Matchday 3 Uganda KCCA 3–2 (H)
Botswana Township Rollers 1–0 (A) Matchday 4 Uganda KCCA 1–0 (A)
Tunisia Espérance de Tunis 1–0 (A) Matchday 5 Egypt Al Ahly 0–1 (H)
Uganda KCCA 4–3 (H) Matchday 6 Botswana Township Rollers 0–0 (A)
Group A winner

Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Egypt Al Ahly 6 13
2 Tunisia Espérance de Tunis 6 11
3 Uganda KCCA 6 6
4 Botswana Township Rollers 6 4
Source: CAF
 Final standings Group A runner-up

Pos Team Pld Pts
1 Egypt Al Ahly 6 13
2 Tunisia Espérance de Tunis 6 11
3 Uganda KCCA 6 6
4 Botswana Township Rollers 6 4
Source: CAF
Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg Knockout stage Opponent Agg. 1st leg 2nd leg
Guinea Horoya 4–0 0–0 (A) 4–0 (H) Quarter-finals Tunisia Étoile du Sahel 3–1 2–1 (H) 1–0 (A)
Algeria ES Sétif 3–2 2–0 (H) 1–2 (A) Semi-finals Angola 1º de Agosto 4–3 0–1 (A) 4–2 (H)

Format

The final was played on a home-and-away two-legged basis, with the order of legs determined by the knockout stage draw, which was held on 3 September 2018, 20:00 EET (UTC+2), at the CAF headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.[7][8][9]

If the aggregate score was tied after the second leg, the away goals rule would be applied, and if still tied, extra time would not be played, and the penalty shoot-out would be used to determine the winner.[3]

Matches

First leg

Al Ahly Egypt3–1Tunisia Espérance de Tunis
 Report
Attendance: 60,000
Al-Ahly
Espérance de Tunis
GK16Egypt Mohamed El Shenawy
RB24Egypt Ahmed Fathydownward-facing red arrow 22'
CB20Egypt Saad SamirYellow card 49'
CB3Mali Salif Coulibaly
LB12Egypt Ayman Ashraf
RM17Egypt Ahmed Hamoudidownward-facing red arrow 67'
CM25Egypt Hossam Ashour (c)
CM14Egypt Amr El Solia
LM5Egypt Islam Mohareb
AM11Egypt Walid Soliman
CF9Morocco Walid Azaro
Substitutes:
GK1Egypt Sherif Ekramy
DF6Egypt Sabri Raheel
DF30Egypt Mohamed HanyYellow card 87'upward-facing green arrow 22'
MF2Egypt Karim Walid
MF27Egypt Mohamed Gaberupward-facing green arrow 67'
FW18Egypt Marwan Mohsen
FW29Egypt Salah Mohsen
Manager:
France Patrice Carteron
GK1Tunisia Moez Ben Cherifia
RB22Tunisia Sameh DerbaliYellow card 81'
CB5Tunisia Chamseddine DhaouadiYellow card 18'
CB12Tunisia Khalil Chemmam (c)
LB26Tunisia Houcine Rabii
CM15Ivory Coast Fousseny Coulibaly
CM30Cameroon Franck KomYellow card 83'
CM25Tunisia Ghailene Chaalali
RW8Tunisia Anice Badri
CF29Tunisia Taha Yassine Khenissidownward-facing red arrow 80'
LW11Algeria Youcef Belaïli
Substitutes:
GK19Tunisia Rami Jridi
DF2Tunisia Ali Machani
DF24Tunisia Iheb Mbarki
DF27Tunisia Mohamed Ali Yacoubi
MF18Tunisia Saad Bguir
MF28Tunisia Mohamed Amine Meskini
FW9Tunisia Bilel Mejriupward-facing green arrow 80'
Manager:
Tunisia Moïne Chaâbani

Assistant referees:[10]
Abdelhak Etchiali (Algeria)
Jean Claude Birumushahu (Burundi)
Fourth official:
Eric Otogo-Castane (Gabon)
Video assistant referee:
Bakary Gassama (Gambia)
Assistant video assistant referees:
El Hadji Samba (Senegal)
Djibril Camara (Senegal)

Match rules[3]

  • 90 minutes.
  • Seven named substitutes, of which up to three may be used.

Statistics

Second leg

Espérance de Tunis Tunisia3–0Egypt Al Ahly
 Report
Attendance: 60,000
Espérance de Tunis
Al-Ahly
GK1Tunisia Moez Ben CherifiaYellow card 89'
RB22Tunisia Sameh Derbali
CB27Tunisia Mohamed Ali Yacoubi
CB12Tunisia Khalil Chemmam (c)
LB20Tunisia Ayman Ben Mohamed
CM15Ivory Coast Fousseny CoulibalyYellow card 25'
CM25Tunisia Ghailene Chaalali
RW8Tunisia Anice Badri
AM18Tunisia Saad Bguirdownward-facing red arrow 62'
LW11Algeria Youcef Belaïlidownward-facing red arrow 80'
CF29Tunisia Taha Yassine Khenissidownward-facing red arrow 69'
Substitutes:
GK19Tunisia Rami Jridi
DF2Tunisia Ali Machani
DF24Tunisia Iheb Mbarki
DF26Tunisia Houcine Rabiiupward-facing green arrow 62'
MF28Tunisia Mohamed Amine Meskiniupward-facing green arrow 80'
FW9Tunisia Bilel MejriYellow card 90+2'upward-facing green arrow 69'
FW14Tunisia Haythem Jouini
Manager:
Tunisia Moïne Chaâbani
GK16Egypt Mohamed El Shenawy
RB30Egypt Mohamed Hanydownward-facing red arrow 62'
CB20Egypt Saad Samir
CB3Mali Salif Coulibaly
LB12Egypt Ayman Ashraf
CM25Egypt Hossam Ashour (c)
CM14Egypt Amr El Soliadownward-facing red arrow 75'
RW11Egypt Walid SolimanYellow card 25'
AM27Egypt Mohamed Gaberdownward-facing red arrow 62'
LW5Egypt Islam Mohareb
CF18Egypt Marwan Mohsen
Substitutes:
GK1Egypt Sherif Ekramy
DF6Egypt Sabri Raheel
MF2Egypt Karim Walidupward-facing green arrow 62'
MF10Egypt Nasser Maher
MF17Egypt Ahmed Hamoudiupward-facing green arrow 75'
MF22Egypt Akram Tawfik
FW29Egypt Salah Mohsenupward-facing green arrow 62'
Manager:
France Patrice Carteron

Assistant referees:[12]
Zakhele Thusi Siwela (South Africa)
Waleed Ahmed Ali (Sudan)
Fourth official:
Eric Otogo-Castane (Gabon)
Video assistant referee:[13]
Bakary Gassama (Gambia)
Assistant video assistant referees:
El Hadji Samba (Senegal)
Djibril Camara (Senegal)

Match rules[3]

Statistics

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Soliman slots VAR penalties to give Ahly Champions League final edge". CAF. 5 November 2018.
  2. ↑ "Bguir unlikely star as Esperance win CAF Champions League". CAF. 9 November 2018.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "CAF Champions League regulations" (PDF). CAF.
  4. 1 2 "12th final for Ahly, 7th for Esperance". CAF. 31 October 2018.
  5. ↑ "Ahly v Esperance: Head to Head Results". CAF. 31 October 2018.
  6. ↑ "The boys are ready", Al-Ahram Weekly, Al-Ahram Publishing House, no. 965, 17–23 September 2009, archived from the original on 10 October 2010, retrieved 6 June 2010
  7. ↑ "Draw Procedure of the 22nd Edition of Total CAF Champions League, CL 2018" (PDF). CAF. 2 September 2018.
  8. ↑ "CAF Champions League 2018 DRAW". YouTube. 3 September 2018.
  9. ↑ "Total CAF Champions League 2018 Draw". CAF.
  10. ↑ @CAF_Online (November 1, 2018). "Here are the Referees of #TotalCAFCLfinal 1st leg between @AlAhly Vs @EsperanceST" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Al Ahly vs Espérance Tunis live score, H2H and lineups | SofaScore".
  12. ↑ "22nd Edition of Total CAF Champions League: Media start list" (PDF). CAFonline.com. Confederation of African Football. 9 November 2018. Retrieved 9 November 2018.
  13. ↑ "FIFA Referees News: 2018 CAF Champions League - Final". 9 November 2018.
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