Egyptian upstarts Pyramids celebrated a first ever African title on Sunday night – but their Croatian coach Krunoslav Jurcic admitted they still face a struggle to assert themselves domestically.
Having secured a 1-1 draw away in Pretoria against Mamelodi Sundowns in the first leg, the Egyptians were slight favourites heading into the decisive return game on home turf.
And so it transpired, with their 2-1 win on the night sealing a historic 3-2 aggregate victory.
Pyramids’ goals came from Congolese striker Fiston Mayele in the 24th minute and defender Ahmed Samy 10 minutes into the second half. Sundowns managed to reduce the arrears with a goal from Ikram Reiners in the 75th minute, but the hosts saw the job through.
Pyramids – who changed their name, moved to Cairo and won promotion to the Egyptian top flight seven years ago – were able to celebrate by far the biggest night since adopting their new identity.
It was only their second trophy – after Egyptian Cup success last season – and came in just their second CAF Champions League campaign.
They have been seeking to emerge from the shadow of Cairo giants Al Ahly and Zamalek, who have not only dominated Egyptian football but often the Champions League as well.
“When I started with the team last season, we played excellent football and had a long run of winning matches in a row but even then, this was not enough to be champion [in Egypt],” said Jurcic.
“This year again, we were very close but you know that Al Ahly is the best club in Africa, they are very good, they are very strong, and it's very difficult to compete against a club like them.”
The 55-year-old Jurcic was delighted that his pre-match appeals for support led to a 30,000-strong crowd at Sunday’s decider in the June 30 Stadium, usually largely empty for their games.
Cairo’s passionate football followers traditionally support either Al Ahly or Zamalek, with precious little affection for any of the other sides based in the city.
“I’m very grateful for the crowd that came today,” said Jurcic after lifting the trophy. “Usually we get to the stadium 90 minutes before kickoff and there is no one here.
“It’s disheartening for the players, and I find it’s my job to transmit positive energy to try to get them up for the matches.”
The former Croatia international, who played for his country when they finished third at the 1998 World Cup, patrolled the touchline like a man possessed, jumping up and down and cajoling his players throughout the 90 minutes of action.
“I believe that I can transmit my energy in a positive way, and I think that we can be competitive in the future with all the best teams in Egypt,” he added. “But whether we can stay a force is something to see in the future.”
PROFILE OF INVYGO
Started: 2018
Founders: Eslam Hussein and Pulkit Ganjoo
Based: Dubai
Sector: Transport
Size: 9 employees
Investment: $1,275,000
Investors: Class 5 Global, Equitrust, Gulf Islamic Investments, Kairos K50 and William Zeqiri
KEY DEVELOPMENTS IN MARITIME DISPUTE
2000: Israel withdraws from Lebanon after nearly 30 years without an officially demarcated border. The UN establishes the Blue Line to act as the frontier.
2007: Lebanon and Cyprus define their respective exclusive economic zones to facilitate oil and gas exploration. Israel uses this to define its EEZ with Cyprus
2011: Lebanon disputes Israeli-proposed line and submits documents to UN showing different EEZ. Cyprus offers to mediate without much progress.
2018: Lebanon signs first offshore oil and gas licencing deal with consortium of France’s Total, Italy’s Eni and Russia’s Novatek.
2018-2019: US seeks to mediate between Israel and Lebanon to prevent clashes over oil and gas resources.
A meeting of young minds
The 3,494 entries for the 2019 Sharjah Children Biennial come from:
435 – UAE
2,000 – China
808 – United Kingdom
165 – Argentina
38 – Lebanon
16 – Saudi Arabia
16 – Bangladesh
6 – Ireland
3 – Egypt
3 – France
2 – Sudan
1 – Kuwait
1 – Australia
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Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe
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Timeline
2012-2015
The company offers payments/bribes to win key contracts in the Middle East
May 2017
The UK SFO officially opens investigation into Petrofac’s use of agents, corruption, and potential bribery to secure contracts
September 2021
Petrofac pleads guilty to seven counts of failing to prevent bribery under the UK Bribery Act
October 2021
Court fines Petrofac £77 million for bribery. Former executive receives a two-year suspended sentence
December 2024
Petrofac enters into comprehensive restructuring to strengthen the financial position of the group
May 2025
The High Court of England and Wales approves the company’s restructuring plan
July 2025
The Court of Appeal issues a judgment challenging parts of the restructuring plan
August 2025
Petrofac issues a business update to execute the restructuring and confirms it will appeal the Court of Appeal decision
October 2025
Petrofac loses a major TenneT offshore wind contract worth €13 billion. Holding company files for administration in the UK. Petrofac delisted from the London Stock Exchange
November 2025
180 Petrofac employees laid off in the UAE
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The President's Cake
Director: Hasan Hadi
Starring: Baneen Ahmad Nayyef, Waheed Thabet Khreibat, Sajad Mohamad Qasem
Rating: 4/5
Our legal consultant
Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
Tax authority targets shisha levy evasion
The Federal Tax Authority will track shisha imports with electronic markers to protect customers and ensure levies have been paid.
Khalid Ali Al Bustani, director of the tax authority, on Sunday said the move is to "prevent tax evasion and support the authority’s tax collection efforts".
The scheme’s first phase, which came into effect on 1st January, 2019, covers all types of imported and domestically produced and distributed cigarettes. As of May 1, importing any type of cigarettes without the digital marks will be prohibited.
He said the latest phase will see imported and locally produced shisha tobacco tracked by the final quarter of this year.
"The FTA also maintains ongoing communication with concerned companies, to help them adapt their systems to meet our requirements and coordinate between all parties involved," he said.
As with cigarettes, shisha was hit with a 100 per cent tax in October 2017, though manufacturers and cafes absorbed some of the costs to prevent prices doubling.
