Zamalek have secured their place in next season’s CAF Champions League after vice-president Hisham Nasr confirmed the club has resolved all FIFA-related cases that were blocking its CAF club licensing.
Nasr said the Egyptian champions have now completed the requirements to obtain their African club licence, removing the final administrative obstacle to their participation in the continent’s leading club competition.
Speaking to the club’s official “Zamalkawy” platform, he explained that the board, headed by president Hussein Labib, had identified the CAF licence as a central priority in recent months.
“The board placed this file at the top of its priorities to ensure Zamalek obtained the CAF license and could participate in African competitions without any obstacles,” Nasr said.
Financial disputes settled
Nasr confirmed that Zamalek have fully paid money owed to Ukrainian club Oleksandriya, as well as outstanding amounts due to former winger Ibrahima Ndiaye.
“We succeeded in paying the dues owed to Oleksandriya and the outstanding payments to Ibrahima Ndiaye, bringing both cases to a final conclusion regarding the CAF license,” he said.
Those payments bring to an end two disputes that had been handled through FIFA and were directly impacting the club’s eligibility under CAF’s licensing system.
Nasr admitted the path to settlement had not been straightforward, saying the club had to navigate complications before reaching agreement.
“These were two very difficult cases, and we faced obstacles from external parties, but in the end we managed to solve the crisis,” he added.
Licensing threat lifted
Despite winning the Egyptian Premier League title, Zamalek had faced the prospect of missing out on next season’s CAF Champions League because of unresolved FIFA cases and registration sanctions.
Under CAF’s club licensing regulations, all participating teams must demonstrate compliance with FIFA disciplinary rulings and settle any outstanding financial disputes with players, coaches or clubs.
Failure to meet those criteria can result in a club being denied the licence required to enter CAF competitions, regardless of its league position or domestic titles.
By closing the cases with Oleksandriya and Ibrahima Ndiaye and meeting their financial obligations, Zamalek have now satisfied those regulatory conditions.
That clearance secures their eligibility for the next edition of the CAF Champions League and ends uncertainty over whether the newly crowned Egyptian champions would be allowed to represent the country in Africa’s premier club tournament.
