CAF Champions League

[The Moroccan]

Based on the sheer competitiveness of the CAF Champions League in the last 10 years and the last historic achievement from Morocco in the World Cup, the African football is about to witness a total improvement in terms of academies, infrastructures, management, etc...

I think it is very obvious that this is the UEFA Champions League but African, however why not an introduction?

According to Wikipedia, the CAF Champions League, known for sponsorship purposes as the TotalEnergies CAF Champions League and formerly the African Cup of Champions Clubs, is an annual football club competition organized by the Confederation of African Football and contested by top-division African clubs, deciding the competition winners through a round robin group stage to qualify for a double-legged knockout stage, and then a single leg final. It is one of the most prestigious football tournaments in the world and the most prestigious club competition in African football.

The winner of the tournament earns a berth for the FIFA Club World Cup, a tournament contested between the champion clubs from all six continental confederations, and also faces the winner of the CAF Confederation Cup in the following season's CAF Super Cup. Clubs that finish as runners-up their national leagues, having not qualified for the Champions League, are eligible for the second-tier CAF Confederation Cup.

Egyptian clubs have the highest number of victories (16 titles), followed by Morocco with 7. Morocco, Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria have the largest number of winning teams, with three clubs from each having won the title. The competition has been won by 26 clubs, 12 of which have won it more than once. Al Ahly is the most successful club in the competition's history, having won the tournament a record 10 times.

History

Structure and qualification


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Spoiler: Records and statistics

Club	Titles	Seasons Won
🇪🇬 Al Ahly	10	1982, 1987, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2013, 2020, 2021
🇪🇬 Zamalek	5	1984, 1986, 1993, 1996, 2002
🇨🇩 TP Mazembe	5	1967, 1968, 2009, 2010, 2015
🇹🇳 ES Tunis	4	1994, 2011, 2018, 2019
🇬🇳 Hafia	3	1972, 1975, 1977
🇲🇦 Wydad	3	1992, 2017, 2022
🇲🇦 Raja	3	1989, 1997, 1999
🇨🇲 Canon Yaoundé	3	1971, 1978, 1980
🇬🇭 Asante Kotoko	2	1970, 1983
🇩🇿 JS Kabylie	2	1981, 1990
🇳🇬 Enyimba	2	2003, 2004
🇩🇿 ES Sétif	2	1988, 2014
🇨🇩 Vita Club	1	1973
🇬🇭 Hearts of Oak	1	2000
🇹🇳 ES Sahel	1	2007
🇪🇬 Ismaily	1	1969
🇿🇦 Orlando Pirates	1	1995
🇨🇮 ASEC Mimosas	1	1998
🇿🇦 Mamelodi Sundowns	1	2016
🇨🇲 Oryx Douala	1	1965
🇨🇮 Stade d'Abidjan	1	1966
🇨🇬 CARA Brazzaville	1	1974
🇩🇿 MC Alger	1	1976
🇨🇲 Union Douala	1	1979
🇲🇦 ASFAR	1	1985
🇹🇳 Club Africain	1	1991

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Where to watch games?

In the next post, I'll try to give more insight about the 2022-23 season. Do not hesitate to share your thoughts, and stay tuned!​

 

[vialli82]

Nice thread, i hope from what you said that it's really much better organised than before.

Because i edited on some Nations and players from some African teams where impossible to found (not only Africans, there was some west asian good players. CAN and CAF CL needs more visibility.
There's a lot of good players, but very hard to scout that's one reason it's pretty rare to see them in Europe, except middle/lower league countries (France and Belgium especially, then they talk french so ready to play and follow instructions)

I already saw that Egypt, even if it's not always the bigger league in my opinion, Morocco and Tunisia got more concurrency at least when i see the team's names. TP Mazembe is a big source of transfers for Europe, they were in time about formation centre for youth etc.

Now Al Ahly is running on cloud since more than a decade, they got a very solid unified team, and some good old north africans who played in Europe finish their career there.

 

[The Moroccan]

Nice thread, i hope from what you said that it's really much better organised than before.

Because i edited on some Nations and players from some African teams where impossible to found (not only Africans, there was some west asian good players. CAN and CAF CL needs more visibility.

Thanks mate!

Exactly, it's that exposure element that was lacking from African football in the years gone. I mean let's not go very far, if you try to look up players that participated in the AFCON 2012 from Sudan, or Botswana you will get little to no info at all. This was due to the very very unprofessional administrations. However, in the last few years these problems are being solved little by little. These solutions came after a successive set of events that showcased the lack of professionalism not only in the team or league management but also the fans, mainly the successive crowd troubles in Morocco, the killing of Albert Ebossé Bodjongo in Algeria, and perhaps the true turning of events came due to the unfortunate riots in Port Said Stadium, let alone other events that I probably don't remember.

There's a lot of good players, but very hard to scout that's one reason it's pretty rare to see them in Europe, except middle/lower league countries (France and Belgium especially, then they talk french so ready to play and follow instructions)

The scouting issue sheds light on different factors, namely the fact that most of European teams prefer to search for talents from South America as a priority which in my own personal opinion is understandable, yes although most of the players will not be as professional as intended but at least they are doing the job. This does indeed affect African football in a negative way, in which those talents that are waiting for their chance either need to sign a contract with an academy that would secure them (at least) a place in the top tier league (such as Génération Foot in Senegal or Mohammed VI Academy in Morocco). Or risk their talent and sign with a local team, which might eventually result in this player to waste his talent for nothing. And this have happened to many players, a one that I can name is Adam Ennaffati, although he is the first choice right winger in ASFAR, but he never got what exactly he needed, I remember him being the best player of the tournament in the u19 Arab Cup in 2011 while playing in the Mohammed VI Academy, he then signed for Lille B but never got the chance to shine in the Ligue 1 and eventually come back to his youth club FUS Rabat.

The reason I put the emphasis on European league is obvious: Professionalism. Of course there are alternatives, like Asian clubs (regardless of the huge wages), but it is again that problem of exposure, take a look at Middle Eastern teams for example, most of the African players there are mainly from North Africa.

I already saw that Egypt, even if it's not always the bigger league in my opinion, Morocco and Tunisia got more concurrency at least when i see the team's names. TP Mazembe is a big source of transfers for Europe, they were in time about formation centre for youth etc.

For the record, I have never understood Egyptian league, how come you have the most successful club in all of Africa, but your league is in shamble with all due respect. Indeed Moroccan and Tunisian players are more likely to sign in a bigger club (Morocco to France, Tunisia to Switzerland). Let's not forget Nigeria too, but the problem with Nigeria is the fact that they either sign in a fellow African league or a lower league in other continents. In DR Congo, there are both TP Mazembe and Vita Club, those are two teams that usually work as a goldmine for teams from both Africa and Europe.

 

[fabrif94]

Thanks mate!

Exactly, it's that exposure element that was lacking from African football in the years gone. I mean let's not go very far, if you try to look up players that participated in the AFCON 2012 from Sudan, or Botswana you will get little to no info at all. This was due to the very very unprofessional administrations. However, in the last few years these problems are being solved little by little. These solutions came after a successive set of events that showcased the lack of professionalism not only in the team or league management but also the fans, mainly the successive crowd troubles in Morocco, the killing of Albert Ebossé Bodjongo in Algeria, and perhaps the true turning of events came due to the unfortunate riots in Port Said Stadium, let alone other events that I probably don't remember.

The scouting issue sheds light on different factors, namely the fact that most of European teams prefer to search for talents from South America as a priority which in my own personal opinion is understandable, yes although most of the players will not be as professional as intended but at least they are doing the job. This does indeed affect African football in a negative way, in which those talents that are waiting for their chance either need to sign a contract with an academy that would secure them (at least) a place in the top tier league (such as Génération Foot in Senegal or Mohammed VI Academy in Morocco). Or risk their talent and sign with a local team, which might eventually result in this player to waste his talent for nothing. And this have happened to many players, a one that I can name is Adam Ennaffati, although he is the first choice right winger in ASFAR, but he never got what exactly he needed, I remember him being the best player of the tournament in the u19 Arab Cup in 2011 while playing in the Mohammed VI Academy, he then signed for Lille B but never got the chance to shine in the Ligue 1 and eventually come back to his youth club FUS Rabat.

The reason I put the emphasis on European league is obvious: Professionalism. Of course there are alternatives, like Asian clubs (regardless of the huge wages), but it is again that problem of exposure, take a look at Middle Eastern teams for example, most of the African players there are mainly from North Africa.

For the record, I have never understood Egyptian league, how come you have the most successful club in all of Africa, but your league is in shamble with all due respect. Indeed Moroccan and Tunisian players are more likely to sign in a bigger club (Morocco to France, Tunisia to Switzerland). Let's not forget Nigeria too, but the problem with Nigeria is the fact that they either sign in a fellow African league or a lower league in other continents. In DR Congo, there are both TP Mazembe and Vita Club, those are two teams that usually work as a goldmine for teams from both Africa and Europe.

I have been following African football since 2007, my team Boca Juniors (I am from Argentina) played that year in the Club World Cup against Etoile Du Sahel from Tunisia, so I began to follow the league in that country, I became a great fan of Esperance Tunis, in fact I cursed that stupid final against TP Mazembe in 2010 and against Al Ahly in 2012.I also followed Club Africain.

The issue of visibility is a problem, for example in the field of video games. Except Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs (Mamelodi in Fifa08), the rest never appeared in a video game... not even the most successful team in Africa. This is not the fault of the companies alone, it is also the fault of the sports leaders who do not create ways for their teams to transcend borders.

And the issue of hiring from Europe...This happens more because of a structural problem that Africa has, not because of visibility. Europe practically does not need to go to Africa because 98% of African talent is obtained from the immigration they receives from that continent. and it is logical, a Nigerian player who did all his formative divisions at Lyon is going to have a more advanced development as a footballer than a player from Enyimba. There are good formative divisions in Africa, Mazembe for example, but more development is needed in general