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Egyptian football club Al-Ahly has announced filing a complaint to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to appeal against the Confederation of African Football’s (CAF) decision to grant Morocco’s request to host the African Champions League final.
On May 9, CAF announced that the Mohamed V Stadium in Casablanca would be the final’s venue.
Almost immediately, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) launched an official objection against CAF’s decision. However, African football’s governing body chose not to repeal their decision on the venue.
The Egyptian club’s official statement read, “Al Ahly have decided to present an appeal to CAS against the decision of CAF of not holding the 2022 CAF Champions League final in a neutral venue.”
Al Ahly are expected to reach the final after beating Algeria’s ES Setif 4-0 in the first leg of their semi-final. Should they do so, Wydad Casablanca, who secured a comfortable away win (3-1) over Angola’s Petro Atletico de Luanda in the first leg of their semi final, will likely be the Egyptian club’s opponent.
In its complaint, the Egyptian club noted, “Moreover, Al Ahly hopes CAF will be keen not to disrupt justice and they will provide CAS with all the required documents that will help in achieving justice.”
Read Also: Egypt Objects to CAF Decision to Hold Champions League Final in Morocco
It will be the second year in a row that Casablanca’s Mohamed V Stadium will host the final, with Al Ahly beating South African outfit Kaizer Chiefs 3-0 last year. The club has won the Champions League a record 10 times, with Wydad Casablanca claiming two titles themselves.
CAF confirmed that it had received bids from Morocco and Senegal to host the final of the tournament. But the Senegalese federation later withdrew its bid, making Morocco the only candidate to host the final.
“The Senegalese Football Federation subsequently withdrew their bid. CAF is, therefore, pleased to award the hosting of the Champions League final to Morocco,” CAF stated on May 9.
Despite CAF’s justification, the key point in Al Ahly’s request is that the final should not be held in a country home to any of the remaining teams in this year’s competition. This would exclude Morocco and Egypt, as well as Algeria and Angola. The final will be played on May 30 2022.
