Egyptian Premier League

The Egyptian Premier League (Arabic: الدوري المصري الممتاز‎) is a professional association football league in Egypt and the top level of the Egyptian football league system. The league comprises 18 teams since the 2015–16 season and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the Egyptian Second Division. Seasons mostly run from August to May. Unlike most other leagues, all games are played all over the week. All of the Egyptian Premier League clubs qualify for the Egypt Cup. The winner of the Egyptian Premier League qualifies for the Egyptian Super Cup.

Egyptian Premier League
Organising bodyEgyptian Football Association (EFA)
Founded22 October 1948 (22 October 1948)
CountryEgypt
ConfederationCAF
Number of teams18
Level on pyramid1
Relegation toEgyptian Second Division
Domestic cup(s)Egypt Cup
Egyptian Super Cup
International cup(s)CAF Champions League
CAF Confederation Cup
Current championsAl Ahly (42nd title)
(2019–20)
Most championshipsAl Ahly SC (42 titles)
Most appearancesOussa (359)
Top goalscorerHassan El Shazly (176 goals)
TV partnersONTime Sports and Time Sports
(live matches and highlights)
Websiteefa.eg
Current: 2020–21 Egyptian Premier League

70 clubs have competed in the Egyptian Premier League since its founding in 1948. Al Ahly have won the title 42 times, more than any other club. Only six other clubs have won the league before; those clubs are Ghazl El Mahalla, Ismaily, Al Mokawloon Al Arab, Olympic Club, Tersana and Zamalek.

The Egyptian Premier League is one of the top national leagues, ranked third in Africa according to CAF's 5-Year Ranking for the 2019–20 season, based on performances in African competitions over the past five seasons.

The Egyptian Premier League used to be one of the leagues with the highest average stadium attendance in Africa and the Middle East until the Port Said Stadium riot occurred on 1 February 2012 after a league match involving Al Masry and Al Ahly, where 74 people were killed and more than 500 were injured.[1] Since that date, all domestic football matches were played behind closed doors until 2017, when the local security authorities started to allow fans to attend selected matches with gradually increasing numbers starting from 100 attendance only.

Competition format and sponsorship

Competition

There are 18 clubs in the Egyptian Premier League. The season lasts from August to May. During the course of the season, each club plays the others twice, once at their home stadium and once at that of their opponents, for a total of 34 games. Teams receive three points for a win and one point for a draw. No points are awarded for a loss. Teams are ranked by total points, then the direct confrontation, then goal difference, and then goals scored. At the end of each season, the club with the most points is crowned champion. If points are equal, the direct confrontation, the goal difference and then goals scored determine the winner. The three lowest placed teams are relegated into the Division II League, and the top three teams from the three groups into the Division II league, together, are promoted in their place.

Sponsorship

The Egyptian Premier League has been sponsored since 2005. The sponsor has been able to determine the league's sponsorship name. The list below details who the sponsors have been and what they called the competition:

  • 2005–07: Vodafone Egyptian Premier League
  • 2007–11: Etisalat Egyptian Premier League
  • 2011–14: Vodafone Egyptian Premier League
  • 2014–present: Egyptian Premier League (Sponsored by Presentation Sports)

Media coverage

All matches are televised on ONTime Sports.

Clubs

A total of 66 clubs have played in the Egyptian Premier League from its inception in 1948–49 up to and including the 2017–18 season. But only two clubs have been members of the Egyptian Premier League for every season since its inception. These are Al Ahly and Zamalek, meanwhile Al-Ittihad and Al Masry have been absent only for two seasons of the League since its inception.

Members for 2019–20

The following 18 clubs are competing in the Egyptian Premier League as of the 2019–20 season.

+Promoted teams (from the 2018–19 Second Division season to the Premier League)

Stadiums
Locations of the 2017–18 Egyptian Premier League teams

Current stadiums
Stadium City Seating Capacity
Borg El Arab StadiumAlexandria86,000
Cairo International StadiumCairo74,100
Egyptian Army StadiumSuez45,000
Osman Ahmed Osman StadiumCairo35,000
Al Salam StadiumCairo30,000
Fayoum StadiumFayoum20,000
Suez StadiumSuez27,000
Cairo Military Academy StadiumCairo28,500
Petrosport StadiumCairo25,000
Harras El-Hedoud StadiumAlexandria22,500
30th of June StadiumCairo30,000
El Mansoura StadiumMansura20,000
El Mahalla StadiumMahalla29,000
Ismailia StadiumIsmaïlia18,525
Port Said StadiumPort Said17,988
Asiut University StadiumAsyut16,000
Tersana StadiumGiza15,000
El-Shams StadiumCairo15,000
Alexandria StadiumAlexandria13,660
Khaled Bichara StadiumEl Gouna13,000

List of seasons

The following table provides a summary of seasons:[2]

No. Season Champions
(number of titles)		 Runners-up Third place
1 1948–49 Al Ahly (1) Tersana Ismaily
2 1949–50 Al Ahly (2) Tersana Zamalek
3 1950–51 Al Ahly (3) Zamalek Al Masry
— 1951–52
Not played due to participation in the 1952 Summer Olympics.
4 1952–53 Al Ahly (4) Zamalek Al Masry
5 1953–54 Al Ahly (5) Zamalek Tersana
— 1954–55
Not finished due to refusal of Al Ahly to comply with
the federation's penalty of playing one match away from home.
6 1955–56 Al Ahly (6) Zamalek El Qannah
7 1956–57 Al Ahly (7) Zamalek Ismaily
8 1957–58 Al Ahly (8) Zamalek El Olympi
9 1958–59 Al Ahly (9) Zamalek Tersana
10 1959–60 Zamalek (1) Tersana Al Ahly
11 1960–61 Al Ahly (10) Zamalek Tersana
12 1961–62 Al Ahly (11) Zamalek Tersana
13 1962–63 Tersana (1) Zamalek Al Ahly
14 1963–64 Zamalek (2) Tersana Ismaily
15 1964–65 Zamalek (3) Ismaily Tersana
16 1965–66 El Olympi (1) Zamalek Ismaily
17 1966–67 Ismaily (1) Al Ahly Tersana
— 1967–71
Not played due to the Six-Day War.
— 1971–72
Not finished due to violence during Al Ahly vs Zamalek match.
18 1972–73 Ghazl El Mahalla (1) Zamalek Ismaily
— 1973–74
Not finished due to the 6th of October War.
19 1974–75 Al Ahly (12) Tersana Ismaily
20 1975–76 Al Ahly (13) Ghazl El Mahalla Zamalek
21 1976–77 Al Ahly (14) Zamalek El Ittihad El Sakndary
22 1977–78 Zamalek (4) Al Ahly El Olympi
23 1978–79 Al Ahly (15) Zamalek Ghazl El Mahalla
24 1979–80 Al Ahly (16) Zamalek Al Masry
25 1980–81 Al Ahly (17) Zamalek Al Masry
26 1981–82 Al Ahly (18) Zamalek El Ittihad El Sakndary
27 1982–83 Al Mokawloon (1) Zamalek Al Ahly
28 1983–84 Zamalek (5) Al Ahly Ismaily
29 1984–85 Al Ahly (19) Zamalek Ismaily
30 1985–86 Al Ahly (20) Zamalek Ismaily
31 1986–87 Al Ahly (21) Zamalek Tersana
32 1987–88 Zamalek (6) Al Ahly Ghazl El Mahalla
33 1988–89 Al Ahly (22) Zamalek Ghazl El Mahalla
— 1989–90
Not finished due to preparation of Egypt for the 1990 FIFA World Cup.
34 1990–91 Ismaily (2) Al Ahly Zamalek
35 1991–92 Zamalek (7) Ismaily Ghazl El Mahalla
36 1992–93 Zamalek (8) Al Ahly Ghazl El Mahalla
37 1993–94 Al Ahly (23) Ismaily Zamalek
38 1994–95 Al Ahly (24) Zamalek Ismaily
39 1995–96 Al Ahly (25) Zamalek Ismaily
40 1996–97 Al Ahly (26) Zamalek El Mansoura
41 1997–98 Al Ahly (27) Zamalek Al Mokawloon
42 1998–99 Al Ahly (28) Zamalek Ismaily
43 1999–00 Al Ahly (29) Ismaily Zamalek
44 2000–01 Zamalek (9) Al Ahly Al Masry
45 2001–02 Ismaily (3) Al Ahly Zamalek
46 2002–03 Zamalek (10) Al Ahly Ismaily
47 2003–04 Zamalek (11) Al Ahly Ismaily
48 2004–05 Al Ahly (30) ENPPI Haras El Hodoud
49 2005–06 Al Ahly (31) Zamalek ENPPI
50 2006–07 Al Ahly (32) Zamalek Ismaily
51 2007–08 Al Ahly (33) Ismaily Zamalek
52 2008–09 Al Ahly (34) Ismaily Petrojet
53 2009–10 Al Ahly (35) Zamalek Ismaily
54 2010–11 Al Ahly (36) Zamalek Ismaily
— 2011–12
Not finished due to the Port Said Stadium riot.
— 2012–13
Not finished due to the 30th of June Coup d'état
55 2013–14 Al Ahly (37) Smouha Zamalek
56 2014–15 Zamalek (12) Al Ahly ENPPI
57 2015–16 Al Ahly (38) Zamalek Smouha
58 2016–17 Al Ahly (39) Misr Lel Makasa Zamalek
59 2017–18 Al Ahly (40) Ismaily Al Masry
60 2018–19 Al Ahly (41) Zamalek Pyramids
61 2019–20 Al Ahly (42) Zamalek Pyramids

Performance

Performance by club
Club Winners Runners-up Third places Winning Seasons
Al Ahly 42 11 3 1948–49, 1949–50, 1950–51, 1952–53,1953–54, 1955–56, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1981–82, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1986–87, 1988–89, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–00, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2007–08, 2008–09, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20
Zamalek 12 33 9 1959–60, 1963–64, 1964–65, 1977–78, 1983–84, 1987–88, 1991–92, 1992–93, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2003–04, 2014–15
Ismaily 3 7 17 1966–67, 1990–91, 2001–02
Tersana 1 5 7 1962–63
Ghazl El Mahalla 1 1 5 1972–73
El Olympi 1 – 2 1965–66
Al Mokawloon 1 – 1 1982–83
ENPPI – 1 2
Smouha – 1 1
Misr Lel Makasa – 1 –
Al Masry – – 6
El Ittihad El Sakndary – – 2
El Qannah – – 1
El Mansoura – – 1
Haras El Hodoud – – 1
Petrojet – – 1
Pyramids – – 2

Performance by city
City Winners Club(s)
Cairo
56
 Al Ahly (42), Zamalek (12), Tersana (1), Al Mokawloon (1)
Ismaïlia
3
 Ismaily (3)
El Mahalla El Kubra
1
 Ghazl El Mahalla (1)
Alexandria
1
 El Olympi (1)

Doubles

Two teams have won the double of the Egyptian Premier League and the Egypt Cup.

Club Number Seasons
Al Ahly
15
 1948–49, 1949–50, 1950–51, 1952–53, 1955–56, 1957–58, 1960–61, 1980–81, 1984–85, 1988–89, 1995–96, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2016–17, 2019–20
Zamalek
3
 1959–60, 1987–88, 2014–15

Top goalscorers

All seasons top goalscorers
Season Player Club Goals
1948–49 Mohamed Diab El-Attar "Diba"El Ittihad El Sakandary15
El-Sayed El-DhizuiAl Masry
1949–50 El-Sayed El-DhizuiAl Masry13
1950–51 El-Sayed El-DhizuiAl Masry13
1952–53 Ahmed MekawiAl Ahly

12

1953–54 Abdel NabiTersana18
1955–56 Sayed SalehAl Ahly12
1956–57 Alaa El-HamoulyZamalek16
1957–58 Hamdi Abdel FattahTersana19
1958–59 El-Sayed El-DhizuiAl Ahly16
1959–60 Hamdi Abdel FattahTersana15
1960–61 Ali MohsenZamalek16
1961–62 Moustafa ReyadhTersana18
1962–63 Hassan El-ShazlyTersana32
1963–64 Moustafa ReyadhTersana27
1964–65 Hassan El-ShazlyTersana23
1965–66 Hassan El-ShazlyTersana16
1966–67 Ali Abo GreishaIsmaily15
1972–73 Omasha OmashaGhazl El Mahalla11
1974–75 Hassan El-ShazlyTersana34
1975–76 Ossama KhalilIsmaily17
1976–77 Ali KhalilZamalek17
Hassan ShehataZamalek
1977–78 Mahmoud El KhatibAl Ahly11
1978–79 Ali KhalilZamalek12
1979–80 Hassan ShehataZamalek14
1980–81 Mahmoud El KhatibAl Ahly11
1981–82 Gamal GoudaAl Masry8
1982–83 Mahmoud El-MashaquiGhazl El Mahalla9
1983–84 Ayman ShawkyKoroum8
1984–85 Mohamed HazemIsmaily11
1985–86 Mohamed HazemIsmaily11
1986–87 Emad SolimanIsmaily11
1987–88 Gamal Abdel-HameedZamalek11
1988–89 Mahmoud El-MashaquiGhazl El Mahalla11
1990–91 Mohamed RamadanAl Ahly14
1991–92 Ahmed El-KassEl Olympi14
1992–93 Ahmed El-KassEl Olympi16
1993–94 Ahmed El-KassEl Olympi15
Bashir Abdel SamadIsmaily
1994–95 Abdullah El-SawyEl Qannah10
Ahmed SaryEl Ittihad El Sakandary
1995–96 Mohamed Salah Abo GreishaIsmaily14
1996–97 Ayman MohebEl Mansoura17
1997–98 Abdul-Hamid BassiounyZamalek15
1998–99 Hossam HassanAl Ahly15
1999–00 John UtakaIsmaily17
2000–01 Tarek El-SaidZamalek13
2001–02 Hossam HassanZamalek18
2002–03 Ahmad BelalAl Ahly19
2003–04 Abdel Halim AliZamalek14
2004–05 Emad MoteabAl Ahly15
2005–06 Mohamed AboutrikaAl Ahly18
2006–07 Flávio AmadoAl Ahly17
2007–08 Alaa IbrahimPetrojet15
2008–09 Ernest Papa ArkoTala'ea El Gaish12
Flávio AmadoAl Ahly
2009–10 Minusu BubaIttihad El Shorta14
2010–11 Ahmed Abd El-ZaherENPPI13
ShikabalaZamalek
2013–14 John AntwiIsmaily11
2014–15 Hossam SalamaEl-Dakhleya20
2015–16 Hossam SalamaSmouha17
2016–17 Ahmed El SheikhMisr Lel Makasa17
2017–18 Walid AzaroAl Ahly18
2018–19 Ahmed AliAl Mokawloon18
2019–20 Abdallah El SaidPyramids17

All time top goalscorers

Last updated 3 October 2020.

No. Player Teams Goals
1 Hassan El-Shazly Tersana 176
2 Hossam Hassan Al Ahly / Zamalek / Al Masry / Tersana / El Ittihad El Sakandary 168
3 Moustafa Reyadh Tersana 123
4 El-Sayed El-Dhizui Al Masry / Al Ahly 112
5 Abdallah Said Ismaily / Al Ahly / Pyramids 110
6 Mahmoud El Khatib Al Ahly 109
7 Ahmed El-Kass El Olympi / Zamalek / El Ittihad El Sakandary 107
8 Mohamed Aboutrika Tersana / Al Ahly 106
9 Gamal Abdel-Hameed Al Ahly / Zamalek 101

References
  1. "In pictures: Jubilation in Cairo, riots in Port Said". The Independent. 26 January 2013. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  2. Tarek Said ,MD. "Zamalek Sporting Club – Egyptian Football Net نادي الزمالك الرياضي و كرة القدم المصرية". Angelfire.com. Retrieved 17 April 2017.
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