Al-Ahly in the men’s competition and Petro Atlético de Luanda in the women’s competition were crowned champions at the 46th edition of the CAHB Men's and Women's African Club Championship, which took place in Casablanca, Morocco, from 11 October to 20 October.

Nine teams lined up at the start in the men’s competition, with seven teams featuring in  the women’s competition, with Al-Ahly and Petro Atlético de Luanda, two of the most decorated teams in the history of the CAHB Men's and Women's African Club Championship adding one more title to their trophy cabinet.

Al-Ahly confirmed their status as the dominant force of African club handball in the men’s competition, becoming only the third team in history after rivals Zamalek SC and Algerian club Mouloudia Club d'Alger to secure the CAHB Men's African Club Championship for the third consecutive time.

In the previous two editions, Al-Ahly had no issues to dispose of Jeunesse Sportive de Kinshasa and Flowers SC in the final and this time around they had no issues throughout the competition, securing seven wins in a row to clinch their eighth trophy.

Al-Ahly started the preliminary round with a 41:11 win over Ethiopian side Mekele 70, following up with a 29:12 win over Ivorian side Red Star, a 29:19 win over Jeunesse Sportive de Kinshasa and a 55:20 win over Police HC.

Red Star finished second in the group, with five points, followed by Police HC, with four points, Jeunesse Sportive de Kinshasa, with three points, while Mekele ended up with zero points and were eliminated.

In the other group, Moroccan side Montada swept their opponents to finish first in the standings, followed by FAP Yaounde, with four points, Manga DFIP, with two points and Flowers CNSS, with zero points.

Al-Ahly dominated Flowers in a rematch of last edition’s final, 43:22, to secure their place in the quarter-finals, where they were joined by FAP Yaounde, Red Star and Montada.

Once again, Al-Ahly were dominant in the semi-finals, taking a 37:14 win over FAP Yaounde, with Montada, the hosts, dominating Red Star, 33:24, becoming only the second Moroccan team to feature in the final, after AS Casablanca, in 2008.

However, Montada had no chances to be competitive in the final, with Al-Ahly’s experience and depth proving too much for their opponents, as the Egyptian champions clinched their eighth title with a 31:20 win, with wing Omar Khaled scoring eight goals. In the bronze medal match, FAP Yaounde secured a 24:21 win over Red Star.

In the CAHB Women’s African Club Championship, Petro Atlético de Luanda secured their second title in a row and their 21th in history, once again emerging unscathed, but a subtle power shift could be felt, with Al-Ahly’s women team playing the final for the first time since the inaugural edition in 1979.

The seven participating teams were divided into two groups. Group A was won by Al-Ahly, which secured a 31:24 win against TKC Yaoundé in the first match and a 47:17 win over AS Nouasser in the second match.

Group B saw Petro Atlético de Luanda dominate, with the Angolan side taking a 43:21 win over Flowers CNSS, a 35:17 win over Africa Sport and a 36:23 win over FAP Yaoundé, with the second places going to TKC Yaoundé in Group A and FAP Yaoundé in Group B.
With Petro Atlético de Luanda qualified to the semi-finals, Al-Ahly needed to eliminate Flowers CNSS, 40:30, while TKC Yaoundé and FAP Yaoundé also made it to the next phase, by winning against Africa Sport, 26:22, and AS Nouasser, 33:18, respectively.

In the semi-finals, Petro Atlético de Luanda throttled TKC, 40:14, while Al-Ahly had to sweat against FAP, 23:19, but the two unbeaten teams finally met in the final.

It was a nip and tuck battle and Al-Ahly were close to deliver a huge shock, after leading at the break, 12:9. However, Petro Atlético de Luanda bounced back and thanks to a eight-goal outing from Batalha Castro Thayany, they managed to snatch a last-gasp 24:23 win to secure the title.

In the bronze medal match, the Cameroonian derby was won by TKC, which secured a 22:21 win over FAP.

Credit photo: CAHB