Egyptian football club Al Ahly SC has stepped up efforts to overhaul its football structure after a disappointing campaign, with a delegation from Dutch side AFC Ajax arriving in Cairo to discuss a potential cooperation agreement focused on youth development.
The visit forms part of Al-Ahly’s broader plan to restructure the football sector following a season in which the club secured only the Egyptian Super Cup title, which was played in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.
The Cairo club endured a difficult domestic and continental campaign, missing out on the Egyptian Premier League title, the CAF Champions League, the Egyptian Cup and the Capital of Egypt Cup. Al-Ahly finished the season in third place and will therefore compete in the CAF Confederation Cup next season rather than Africa’s premier club competition.
Club officials are now seeking what has been described as a “qualitative shift” within the football department, with the youth sector placed at the centre of the rebuilding process.
The existing academy structure received praise from the club despite the disappointing first-team season. Appreciation was reportedly extended to youth sector head Walid Suleiman, technical director Wart Langer and the coaching staff working within the academy system.
Earlier reports from WinWin had revealed that board member Sayed Abdel Hafeez travelled to Belgium and the Netherlands to hold negotiations aimed at recruiting foreign expertise to lead the youth sector. During the trip, meetings reportedly took place with Ajax officials regarding a long-term cooperation protocol.
According to a source at Al-Ahly, an Ajax delegation arrived in Cairo on Wednesday evening before visiting the club’s youth training facilities in Nasr City on Thursday morning.
The source told WinWin: “The delegation inspected the fields, the dressing rooms and all matters related to the sector, then headed to the club’s headquarters in Gezira to meet with Sayed Abdel-Hafiz, a member of the board of directors.”
The visit is understood to be part of the evaluation process before a formal agreement is concluded between the two clubs.
The source added: “There is some confusion here. The delegation that came to Cairo was from Ajax Amsterdam to examine all matters, and then they will hold a negotiation session with Sayed Abdel Hafeez to put the final touches on the deal before finalizing the contract.”
The proposed agreement would reportedly see Ajax contribute directly to the management and technical development of Al-Ahly’s youth academy.
The source explained: “Once the contract is finalized, a full technical staff from Ajax will come to manage the youth sector at Al-Ahly, and of course not the delegation that came to the club headquarters.”
The cooperation protocol is also expected to extend beyond coaching appointments. According to the source, the agreement would focus heavily on transferring Ajax’s expertise in player development and academy management to the Egyptian club.
The source stressed that the partnership would include “transferring Ajax’s experience in developing the youth sector to Al-Ahly Club, along with exchanging experiences and conducting training and professionalization experiences for the Red Castle’s players.”
Ajax are widely regarded as one of Europe’s leading clubs in youth development, producing generations of elite footballers through their academy system. Al-Ahly’s interest in the Dutch club’s methods underlines the scale of the changes being considered as the Egyptian side attempts to rebuild following one of its most difficult recent seasons.
