| 2024 Egyptian League Cup final | |
| Team1: | Ceramica Cleopatra |
| Team1score: | 3 |
| Team2: | Tala'ea El Gaish |
| Team2score: | 1 |
| Stadium: | 30 June Stadium |
| City: | Cairo |
| Man Of The Match1a: | Sodiq Awujoola (Ceramica Cleopatra) |
| Referee: | Radu Petrescu (Romania)[1] |
| Attendance: | 1,000 |
| Weather: | Fair 32°C 49% humidity[2] |
| Previous: | 2023 |
| Next: | 2025 |
The 2024 Egyptian League Cup final was the final match of the 2023–24 Egyptian League Cup, the third edition of the competition since its establishment in 2021. It was played between Ceramica Cleopatra and Tala'ea El Gaish on 7 August 2024 at 30 June Stadium in Cairo.[3]
Ceramica Cleopatra were looking to win their second consecutive League Cup title, following their 4–1 victory in the 2023 final against Al Masry, and to become the first Egyptian club (beside Al Ahly and Zamalek) to win two consecutive domestic competitions since Haras El Hodoud in 2009.[4] [5] Tala'ea El Gaish on the other side played in the final for the first time, and were seeking the second major title in the club's history, with their only triump being the 2021 Egyptian Super Cup trophy.[6]
Defending champions Ceramica Cleopatra successfully defended their title as they beat Tala'ea El Gaish 3–1 in the final, winning their second League Cup trophy and second major title in the club's history.[7]
See main article: 2023–24 Egyptian League Cup.
| Round | Opposition | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GS | ENPPI | 2–0 | |
| GS | Ismaily | 3–1 | |
| GS | El Dakhleya | 1–1 | |
| QF | Smouha | 2–0 | |
| SF | Al Ittihad | 1–0 |
As the defending champions, Ceramica Cleopatra were seeded and placed in Pot 1, and were drawn in Group C with ENPPI, Ismaily and El Dakhleya.[8] Their first group match was on 10 January 2024 against ENPPI, and ended as a 2–0 victory with goals from Sodiq Awujoola and former ENPPI forward John Okoye Ebuka.[9] The second match was one week later, an away fixture against Ismaily, which ended 3–1 in favor of Ceramica Cleopatra, with Ahmed Yasser Rayyan, Ahmed Kendouci and Ahmed Belhadji on the scoresheet.[10] The third match was at home on 24 January against El Dakhleya, and ended as a 1–1 draw, with Ahmed Hany scoring for the home side, which was enough to secure the top spot of the group.[11]
In the quarter-finals, the club played against Smouha on 1 February, and grabbed a 2–0 win thanks to early goals from Rayyan and an own goal by Sherif Reda.[12] In the semi-finals, Ceramica Cleopatra faced Al Ittihad away from home on 6 February, who were also their opponents in the semi-finals of the previous season, and managed to grab a narrow 1–0 win with Kendouci scoring the only goal of the match; sending the club to the final for the second consecutive season.[13]
| Round | Opposition | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|
| GS | ZED | 1–0 | |
| GS | Pyramids | 2–2 | |
| GS | Pharco | 1–0 | |
| QF | El Gouna | 1–1 (6–5 p.) | |
| SF | Al Masry | 1–1 (3–1 p.) |
Coming from Pot 3, Tala'ea El Gaish were drawn in Group B, alongside Pyramids, Pharco and ZED. The club's first group match was played on 9 January 2024 against ZED, and ended as a 1–0 victory, with Youssry Wahid scoring the only goal of the match.[14] Their second match was played one week later against Pyramids, and ended as a 2–2 draw, with Paul Joules and Wahid scoring for Tala'ea El Gaish.[15] The club's last group match was played on 26 January against Pharco, and ended as a win by a single goal, also scored by Wahid, that secured the top spot of the group for Tala'ea El Gaish and their place in the knockout stage.[16]
In the quarter-finals, the club faced El Gouna at home on 31 January, and managed to advance to the semi-finals after winning 6–5 on penalties, after the original time ended 1–1, with Ahmed Abdel Rahman scoring the club's only goal.[17] In the semi-finals, the club faced last year's runners-up Al Masry on 1 February, and despite Al Masry being the favourites to proceed to the final, Tala'ea El Gaish again won on penalties, with the result of 3–1, after the match ended 1–1, with Godwin Okwara scoring his side's only goal; resulting in Tala'ea El Gaish reaching the final for the first time in their history, and preventing a replay of the 2023 final.[18]
30 June Stadium was chosen on 16 July 2024 by the EPL to host the final.[19]
The stadium is one of the recently-opened stadiums in Egypt, which was opened in 2012, and has been the home venue for Egyptian Premier League side Pyramids since their formation in 2018. It was one of the venues of the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations, and previously hosted the 2018 UAE Super Cup between Al Ain and Al Wahda, and the 2021 CAF Women's Champions League final between Hasaacas Ladies and Mamelodi Sundowns.
Alexandria Stadium was originally chosen by the EPL on 25 June 2024 to host the final, scheduled to be played on 22 July 2024.[20] However, the match was postponed and relocated to a different venue after a fire broke out in the stadium during a league game between Smouha and Pyramids on 28 June 2024, which affected the lightning system in the stadium.[21]
The New Administrative Capital Stadium, a newly-opened stadium in the New Administrative Capital, was a candidate to host the match, but was eventually not chosen to host the match.[22]
The match officials were announced on 5 August 2024. Radu Petrescu, who previously officiated the 2019 Egypt Cup final, was selected as the main referee, with Radu Ghinguleac and Vasile Marinescu chosen as the assistant referees, and Bogdan Dumitrache as the fourth official. Andrei Chivulete and Sebastian Gheorghe were selected as the video assistant referee and the assistant video assistant referee, respectively.
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| Man of the Match: Sodiq Awujoola (Ceramica Cleopatra)
| Match rules
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| Statistic | Ceramica Cleopatra | Tala'ea El Gaish | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope=row | Goals scored | 1 | 1 | |
| scope=row | Total shots | 6 | 4 | |
| scope=row | Shots on target | 2 | 2 | |
| scope=row | Ball possession | 54% | 46% | |
| scope=row | Corner kicks | 1 | 1 | |
| scope=row | Fouls committed | 8 | 8 | |
| scope=row | Offsides | 0 | 0 | |
| scope=row | Yellow cards | 2 | 1 | |
| scope=row | Red cards | 0 | 0 |
| Statistic | Ceramica Cleopatra | Tala'ea El Gaish | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope=row | Goals scored | 2 | 0 | |
| scope=row | Total shots | 7 | 2 | |
| scope=row | Shots on target | 3 | 1 | |
| scope=row | Ball possession | 60% | 40% | |
| scope=row | Corner kicks | 2 | 2 | |
| scope=row | Fouls committed | 5 | 9 | |
| scope=row | Offsides | 0 | 0 | |
| scope=row | Yellow cards | 1 | 3 | |
| scope=row | Red cards | 0 | 1 |
| Statistic | Ceramica Cleopatra | Tala'ea El Gaish | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| scope=row | Goals scored | 3 | 1 | |
| scope=row | Total shots | 13 | 6 | |
| scope=row | Shots on target | 5 | 3 | |
| scope=row | Ball possession | 57% | 43% | |
| scope=row | Corner kicks | 3 | 4 | |
| scope=row | Fouls committed | 13 | 17 | |
| scope=row | Offsides | 0 | 0 | |
| scope=row | Yellow cards | 3 | 4 | |
| scope=row | Red cards | 0 | 1 |
Samuel Amadi