The AFC Cup 2019 final has created a rare situation in Asia’s second most prestigious club tournament.
For the first time, the competition will see a Lebanese or a North Korean champion, with the clash between Al-Ahed, and April 25th Sports Club. While for Lebanese football it will be the third time with a representative in the tournament’s final, for North Korea it is a debut appearance at this stage. Moreover, the final will be the first time a club from the country is playing against a West Asian opposition.
The AFC Cup is one of the fascinating football scenes in the world. Epic cinderella stories, football mixed with politics on the field or merely the realistic side of the professional football scenario in Asia - the AFC Cup has it all. This edition final is emphasizing it beautifully.
Ahed’s fans during the semifinal. (Photo: The Asian Football Confederation)
April 25 Sports Club: A Club of the Country
If you face a question about the most influential country in Asia in terms of football, North Korea is probably not the first country that comes up to mind. The national team have qualified to the World Cup only twice and didn’t make much impact within the continent in the recent 30 years. In club football, things are even worse.
The last time that North Korean football clubs participated in the AFC club competition was during the 1990-91 Asian Club Championship. Since then, clubs from ‘the world’s most shuttered country’ didn’t take part in any club competitions for almost a quarter century, until the AFC President Cup was held in 2014. This development brought a drastic change, as North Korean clubs have started to make some significant impact on the AFC Cup. April 25 SC, the finalist of the 2019 AFC Cup, is the leader of this hegemony. Yet, the question many might ask is, who are they?
April 25 SC is known as the most successful club in North Korea, as they’ve won a record number of 19 national championships. The club was founded in 1949, a year before the Korean War, as the Central Sports Training School Sports Club. Soon after the war, its name changed to February 8 SC, and later on to the current name in 1972 by the direct order of Kim Jong-il, the leader. 25.4 is the date when the Korean People’s Army was established.
As the name suggests, the club belongs to the Ministry of People’s Armed Forces in the North Korean Army, and the players are all active soldiers. April 25 is a multi-sport club, that is also operating volleyball, basketball and ice hockey departments, under the same name.
April 25 SC has set some impressive records in the AFC competition. The club’s highest position was the third place back in the Asian Club Championship in 1991. Since the return to continental competitions, the club’s performances have improved in every year. In 2017, the year when North Korea finally decided to send a club to the AFC Cup, April 25 made through the Inter-zone play-off semi-finals but lost to Indian powerhouse, Bengaluru, 3-0. The year after, the team went one stage further, as they ended their journey at the Inter-zone finals, after a defeat against Altyn Asyr from Turkmenistan.
The North Korean international Kim Yu-song is the leading figure of April 25. He is currently ranked second in the 2019 AFC Cup top scorers list, alongside with Ha Noi FC forward Ganiyu Oseni. Kim, who had a short stint in FC Zurich four years ago, has netted nine goals in ten matches in this year’s AFC Cup so far. An Il-bom, last year’s top scorer, is also still an active squad member, making an impressive impact himself.
This year April 25 challenges for both the club and the country’s first AFC Cup trophy. Unfortunately, the situation is not ideal for the team. The final was initially planned to take place in Pyongyang, but later was moved to Shanghai, then eventually to Kuala Lumpur by the AFC, mainly due to commercial reasons.
The biggest and most successful club in North Korea. April 25 is writing history in a controversial reality (Photo: The Asian Football Confederation)
Al-Ahed: The Club of the Organization
Al-Ahed has already featured here before, as they starred in Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the UN when, allegedly, rockets were found in their stadium. But before that obscene saga took place, Ahed’s performances were eye-catching phenomena in BabaGol, as the club from Southern Beirut reached record peaks in the 2016 edition of the AFC Cup. Back then, Ahed reached the Western semifinals, and the players were celebrating in tears. When they tied with Iraqi side Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, they were filled with joy and optimism. But when the team lost at Camille Chamoun at semifinal second leg against Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya, the players cried with tears of sorrow. The club’s progress came after years which Lebanese football suffered from mediocrity and went backwards. The disappointment of the players from not qualifying for the final was original, passionate and real.
Three years later, Ahed completed a perfect comeback. With four championship titles in the past five Lebanese seasons, a worldwide reputation for being the club of Hezbollah (the organisation that practically runs Lebanon in recent years), Ahed is prepared to make some real history for Lebanon football.
Al-Ahed's connection to Hezbollah tells the story of Lebanese football in general. Al-Ahed founded in 1964 in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Dahieh, where the team had played in the past. However, following the wars and the situation on the ground, the team was forced to move to a new stadium, the same one mentioned in the Netanyahu speech. The pitch is located near Rafiq Hariri Airport. By the way, the Lebanese FA has declined and denied Netanyahu’s claims, referring the stadium as a missile cluster.
The prominent names in the squad are Ahmed Zreik, Mohamed Haidar and the goalkeeper Mehdi Khalil who were all part of Ahed’s unbeaten run in the tournament so far, with six victories and four draws, averaging a goal per match. High caliber Tunisian striker in Ahmed Akaichi is also there, which means Ahed is indeed a fun team to watch.
Twice before have Lebanese clubs made the final of the AFC Cup – Nejmeh in 2005 and Safa in 2008 – but never has a side managed to lift the trophy.
After easing their way through Group C undefeated, with four wins and two draws, they overcame Jordanian powerhouse Al-Wehdat 1-0 in a tight West Asian zone semi-final.
Another Jordanian side, Al Jazeera, stood between them and the final and after a 0-0 draw in Amman, a goal from Ahmed Akaïchi in the second leg in Beirut, in front of 10,000 fans, saw Al-Ahed through to their first-ever continental final.
So can they win it in a rainy and humid day in Kuala Lumpur?
Uri Levy