CAF glory on line for Pyramids, Sundowns

PYRAMIDS FC from Egypt will host Mamelodi Sundowns of South Africa in the second leg of the CAF Champions League 2024– 25 Final at the 30 June Stadium in Cairo today.

This will be the 61st final across both eras of the tournament and the 29th since the rebranding to the Champions League in 1997.

Following a 1-1 draw in the first leg on 24 May at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria, where Lucas Ribeiro Costa gave Sundowns the lead in the 54th minute before Walid El Karti equalized in stoppage time for Pyramids.

Pyramids will be crowned champions with a win or a 0-0 draw. Sundowns will lift the trophy with a win or a draw of 2-2 or higher. A 1-1 result will take the tie to penalties.

This is the fourth meeting between the two clubs. They also faced each other in the 2023/24 group stage, drawing 0-0 in Pretoria before Sundowns won 1-0 in Cairo thanks to a goal by Teboho Mokoena. Sundowns topped Group A while Pyramids finished bottom.

Pyramids are hosting a South African club in the Champions League for the third time, having previously beaten Orlando Pirates 3-2 in this season’s semi-final second leg after a goalless first leg in Johannesburg.

Historically, this will be the fifth Champions League final between Egyptian and South African clubs. Egyptian sides have won three of the previous four.

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The first Egypt–South Africa final came in 2001, when Al Ahly defeated Sundowns 4-1 on aggregate. In 2013, Al Ahly again triumphed over a South African side, beating Orlando Pirates 3-1 over two legs.