Pyramids FC of Egypt held off a late surge from South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns to secure a historic 2–1 victory in Cairo on Sunday, clinching their first-ever CAF Champions League title with a 3–2 aggregate win.
In only their second appearance in Africa’s top club competition, Pyramids rose to the occasion at the 30 June Stadium. After a 1–1 draw in the first leg in Pretoria, goals from Fiston Mayele and Ahmed Samy gave the Egyptian side a crucial advantage before Iqraam Rayners pulled one back for Sundowns in the 75th minute.
Despite dominating possession late in the game, Sundowns couldn’t find the second goal they needed to win on away goals.
Normally drawing sparse crowds, Pyramids managed to fill about half of the 30,000-seat stadium after making a public plea for fan support ahead of the decisive second leg.
Both sides made a single change to their lineups from last weekend’s match. Pyramids head coach Krunoslav Jurčić, a former Croatian international, opted to drop leading scorer Ibrahim Adel in favor of former English Premier League winger Ramadan Sobhi. Sundowns boss Miguel Cardoso, who led Tunisia’s Esperance to the 2024 final, brought in Jayden Adams in place of Arthur Sales.
Cardoso becomes only the second manager after the late Argentine Oscar Fulloné to reach back-to-back finals with different clubs.
Before kickoff, Nigerian legend Nwankwo Kanu presented the newly unveiled CAF Champions League trophy on the touchline.
On a hot and blustery day in Cairo, both teams initially struggled to keep possession, but the hosts struck first. Mayele opened the scoring in the 23rd minute with his ninth goal of the campaign, latching onto a loose ball in the box and firing low past Ronwen Williams.
Tensions flared soon after, with Ahmed Atef and Aubrey Modiba both booked for a heated clash.
Sundowns had a golden opportunity to level before halftime when Tashreeq Matthews broke through, but his effort was saved by goalkeeper Ahmed El Shenawy.
Pyramids doubled their lead in the 56th minute through defender Ahmed Samy, who rose to meet a Mohamed Chibi free-kick and nodded home powerfully—his first goal of the tournament and the 19th different scorer for Pyramids this season.
Rayners gave the South Africans hope with a close-range finish in the 75th minute after a poor clearance, but the visitors couldn’t complete the comeback despite relentless pressure.
The win caps a remarkable rise for Pyramids, who now join Africa’s elite as champions of the continent’s most prestigious club competition.
AFP
