2024 was a sporting year par excellence. How could it not? It witnessed continental football competitions at the highest level, the Olympics, and world championships.
The Arab countries had great successes in these competitions, but also failures.
Asian Cup: Arab final won deservedly by Qatar
The Asian Cup of Nations was held in Qatar between January 12 and February 10, 2024.
Among the 24 teams, there were ten Arab teams participating in the tournament: Qatar, the host and champion of the previous edition, Lebanon, Syria, the Emirates, Iraq, Jordan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the Emirates, and the Palestinian team.
Eight Arab teams passed the group stage, and only two teams left the tournament: Lebanon and Oman. In the round of sixteen, only two Arab teams succeeded in winning: the Jordanian team, which beat its Iraqi brother 3-2, and was the surprise of the tournament, and the Qatar team, which beat the Palestinian team two goals to one.
The Jordanian and Qatari national teams continued their march successfully in the quarter-finals and then the semi-finals to meet in the final match at Lusail Stadium, where the Qatari national team star Akram Afif excelled and scored three goals from three penalty kicks, compared to one goal for Jordan scored by Yazan Al-Naimat, so Qatar won 3-1 and won the title. Championship for the second time in a row.
Its star, Akram Afif, won the best player award and the tournament’s top scorer award.
Africa Cup of Nations: a great Arab disappointment
Five Arab teams participated in the tournament, which was held in Côte d’Ivoire between January 13 and February 12, 2024: Egypt, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco and Mauritania. All of them, except for Mauritania, were hoping to win the title, especially Morocco, which ranked fourth in the 2022 Qatar World Cup.
Egypt, with its international star Mohamed Salah, was also a candidate to win, as was the Algerian national team, with its big stars such as Mahrez and Slimani. As for the Tunisian national team, it was also aspiring to win with its many stars, led by Msakni.
Despite all the stars mentioned, the performance was disappointing, as Algeria was eliminated from the first round this time as well, which is the same thing that happened to the Tunisia national team, while Mauritania achieved a historic achievement by advancing to the round of 16, alongside Egypt and Morocco.
However, all three teams were eliminated from this round and no Arab team advanced to the quarter-finals, an issue that has not happened for a long time. Also, not a single Arab player was included in the ideal squad for the tournament, which was dominated by the Côte d’Ivoire players who won the tournament.
Al-Hafnawi disappears, and two Egyptian women shine at the world championship in Qatar
From February 2 to February 18, Qatar, as the first country in the Middle East, hosted the competitions of the 21st edition of the World Aquatics Championships, in which athletes from 201 countries participated. Tunisian swimmer Ahmed Al-Hafnawi (22 years old), the gold medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, failed to obtain any medal or even an advanced position in the races in which he participated.
Al-Hafnawi did not participate in the Olympic Games in Paris this summer, raising many questions and question marks about what happened to him and led to his decline in this tragic manner.
On the other hand, Egypt, the only Arab country, won two medals, as Egyptian swimmer Farida Othman (29 years old) won a bronze medal in the women’s 50-meter butterfly. Maha Amer won a bronze medal for diving from an escalator at a height of one meter.
Beach Soccer World Championship in Dubai
Between February 15 and 25, Dubai hosted the “Beach Soccer World Cup – UAE 2024,” in which 16 teams participated, including two Arab teams: the UAE and Egypt.
Egypt exited the group stage after losing to the UAE and Italy and achieving a victory over the United States, while the UAE advanced to the quarter-finals but lost to Iran.
Al-Ahly and Zamalek are African champions
At the level of football club championships, Egyptian Zamalek won the African Confederation Cup title after defeating Morocco’s RS Berkane, with a clean goal in the second leg of the final round of the tournament at Cairo Stadium (May 19, 2024). The Moroccan team won the first leg 2/1.
Less than a week after Zamalek’s achievement, its traditional rival, Al-Ahly of Egypt, won the African Football Champions League by defeating Esperance of Tunisia with a clean goal (Saturday, May 25) at Cairo International Stadium. The first leg in Rades was a scoreless draw.
Al Ain is the champion of the AFC Champions League
Also on May 25, Al Ain of the United Arab Emirates won the 42nd edition of the AFC Champions League for the 2023-2024 season after its landslide victory over Yokohama Marinos of Japan with a score of 5-1 in the second leg of the final match of the tournament. The Japanese team won the first leg at home 2-1. The tournament’s top scorer was won by Moroccan player Sufyan Rahimi, Al Ain’s top scorer, with 13 goals.
A historic achievement in the Paris Olympics
In the 33rd edition of the Summer Olympics (Paris Olympics), which was held in France from July 24 to August 11, 2024, Arab athletes recorded their best participation in the history of the Olympics.
Although the previous session (Tokyo Olympics 2020) in which the Arabs won the largest number of medals, 18 various medals, compared to 17 medals in Paris, the number of gold medals in Paris is the highest in their history, as they won seven gold medals compared to five medals in the Tokyo Olympics.
Bahrain is in the lead
The seven gold medals came in six sports and were distributed among four men and three women. Bahrain ranked first in the Arab world and 33rd in the world, achieving two golds, a silver and a bronze.
The first gold medal in athletics was achieved by Bahraini runner Winfried Yafi in the 3,000-meter steeplechase race. On the last day of the Games, Bahraini Ahmed Taj Al-Din won the last Arab gold medal with a weight of 97 kg in freestyle wrestling.
Two unique gold medals for Algerian women
Algeria ranked second in the Arab world and 39th globally, with two golds and a bronze. One of the two gold medals went to gymnast Kaylia Nammour (17 years old) on bars of different heights. This is the first time that Arabs have won a medal in gymnastics.
The second gold medal for Algeria was won by boxer Iman Khalif in the 66 kg weight category. Her victory sparked and continues to spark a debate about her sexual eligibility, and Iman was subjected to bullying and accusations. “I am a woman like any other woman,” Khalif said. “I was born a woman, lived a woman and competed as a woman.”
The runner, Jamal Sajati, was satisfied with a bronze medal in the 800-meter sprint, and he dreamed of achieving gold.
Ahmed El-Gindy gives Egypt the only gold medal
Egypt won three medals: one gold and two silver. With a world record, Ahmed El-Gindy improved the Tokyo silver by winning the modern pentathlon gold, giving Egypt its only gold at the Games.
Completing the trio were Egyptian female weightlifter Sarah Samir with silver in the 69kg category and fencer Mohamed El Sayed in the sword category. But Egypt missed out on qualifying for the semi-finals of the handball competition for the second time in a row when it lost to Spain 28-29 after overtime.
Al-Qartousi, Tunisia’s golden boy
Tunisia won a medal of each color, with a silver for fencer Fares Ferjani in Al-Hassam, and a bronze for Muhammad Khalil Al-Jandoubi in the 58 kg weight in taekwondo. As for the Tunisian gold medal, it was won by Firas Al-Qatusi in the 80 kg taekwondo category, after he was denied qualification to Tokyo.
But this sport (Taekwondo) witnessed the failure of Jordanian Saleh Al-Sharbati, wasting his victory after being exposed to five warnings that put him in the crosshairs of criticism. Al-Sharbati’s disappointment was compensated by his compatriot Zaid Mustafa with a silver medal weighing 68 kg.
El Bakkali is golden as usual and a new achievement for Moroccan football
Moroccan Sofiane El Bakkali proved that he is the master of the 3,000-meter steeplechase race, after retaining the gold medal, in an achievement achieved before him by the Finnish Volmari Isso-Hulu in 1932 and 1936. He became the third Arab athlete to win the Games twice, after his compatriot, runner Hicham El Guerrouj, and Tunisian swimmer Oussama Mellouli.
It was noteworthy that Morocco won the bronze medal in football at the expense of Egypt 6-0, the first Arab medal in this sport.
Despite his loss of gold, Barshim enters history
Although he was satisfied with bronze, Qatari Mutaz Barshim became the first athlete to win a high jump medal four times in a row. In his last Olympic participation, the gold medalist in Tokyo, who suffered from a back injury, recorded: 2.34 metres.
Paralympic Games – great Arab achievements
Two weeks after the end of the Paris Olympics, between August 28 and September 8, France hosted the 17th edition of the Paralympics, in which 169 countries participated.
Arab athletes have achieved wonderful achievements, especially Algeria, which ranked first in the Arab world with 11 medals, including 6 gold medals, while Tunisia achieved second place in the Arab world with 11 medals, like Algeria, but won five gold medals. Morocco came third despite having the largest tally of medals, 15 various medals, including three golds.
Egypt ranked fourth in the Arab world with 7 medals, including two gold, then Jordan, which won two gold medals and a bronze medal, then Iraq, which achieved one gold, a silver, and three bronze medals, then Kuwait, which won a gold medal and another bronze, and finally Saudi Arabia, which achieved a single gold medal.
Morocco and Libya in the Futsal World Cup
Morocco and Libya participated in the Futsal World Cup, which was held in Uzbekistan between September 14 and October 16. While Libya was eliminated from the group stage, Morocco advanced to the quarter-finals, but faced Brazil, losing 3-1 and exiting from this round.
The Sudanese national team defies the circumstances and qualifies for the African Nations
Amid a war raging in his country since April 2023, the Sudanese national team put a smile on the faces of Sudanese football fans (November 18) when it reserved a seat in the 35th edition of the African Cup of Nations finals scheduled for Morocco at the end of 2025.
The Sudanese national team finished second in Group Six behind Angola, and this is its tenth time in the tournament, which it won once in 1970 when it was held on its soil.
Al-Jawadi replaces Al-Hafnawi’s absence
The young Tunisian swimmer, Ahmed Al-Jawadi (19 years old), compensated for Ahmed Al-Hafnawi’s failure in Doha, when he won the gold medal for the 1,500-meter race at the World Swimming Championships in Budapest on December 10, 2024.
Al-Jawadi thus joined the achievements of the historic Tunisian swimmer, Osama Mellouli, world champion in 2009 and 2010 in the 1,500-meter race, and Ahmed Al-Hafnawi, world champion in the same previous year in 2023.
26th Gulf Championship in Kuwait
On Saturday, December 21, the matches of the Gulf Cup Football Championship (Gulf 26) began in Kuwait. Eight teams are participating in the tournament, divided into two groups, the first of which includes Kuwait, Qatar, the Emirates and Oman, and the second group includes Iraq, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Yemen.
The final match of the tournament will be held on January 3, 2025.