Several clubs have won the Lebanese football championship since the end of the civil war. Ansar having been crowned champions for over ten years in a row, new competitors like Ahed and Nejmeh have later risen up to the challenge and won.

 

Many clubs have dominated Lebanese football since the end of the civil war. Ansar, Nejmeh, and Ahed are three most important ones, having won the most championships since 1990.

 

The civil war, begun in 1975, gave birth to two separate Lebanese football federations. In his interview with Ici Beyrouth, Joseph Abi Chahine, head of the Arabic sports department at AFP, explains that “from 1975 to 1987, Lebanon was divided into West and East. There were two separate federations for football, in two different areas. In the East, there were the Christian clubs, Racing, Sagesse, and Rawda, and the Armenian teams Homentmen and Homenmen. In the Muslim West, there were the better clubs, Nejmeh and Ansar.”

 

Wadih Abdelnour, journalist at Radio Monte Carlo, tells Ici Beyrouth that “the war started on April 13th, 1975. A week before, Pelé played a friendly game with Nejmeh against the French colleges team”.

 

Fortunately, the end of the civil war unified the two federations. Abi Chahine highlights that “when the war was over, the two federations merged, with Rahif Alame as secretary general. Nabil Rahi was the president of the federation, but Alame was the more active one on the field.”

 

Total Ansar domination, from 1988 to 1999

 

Thanks to some of the finest players, the Ansar club, headed by Salim Diab, would win all Lebanese championships from 1988 to 1999. Abi Chahine explains: “Ansar were crowned champions several years in a row. Their head coach was Adnan el-Charki. They were Lebanese champions 11 times, although there was no competition in 1989 because of the war. Sources from the sports field of the time say that the Lebanese football federation supported Ansar. The owners of Nejmeh, the club with the biggest fanbase in Lebanon, said so regularly too. There was no proof, however, to back such allegations. Ansar had the highest number of international players. Their attack was brilliant, with Fadi Allouche as center forward, Mohammed el-Meselmani as right winger, and Abdelfeteh Chehab as left winger. Ansar had a Palestinian playmaker, Omar Edelbi, who was the brains of the team. They also recruited some of the best international players in the history of Lebanon, like the Trinidad and Tobago midfielder, David Nakhid. Nakhid had previously played in the Swiss league. Ansar’s goalkeepers were Mohamed el-Charif, then Ali Fakih. They also boasted a solid defense and midfield. After Ansar, there were clubs like Safa, Nejmeh, Bourj, Chabeb el-Sahel, Riyada wel adab, and Akhaa Ahly Aley.”

 

Several clubs competing for domination since the 2000’s

 

Since the 1999-2000 season, 21 Lebanon championship titles have been awarded. No one club has dominated during that period: Nejmeh won 6 times, Ansar 3 times, Safa 3 times, Ahed 8 times, and Olympic Beirut once. Abi Chahine states that “in the early 2000’s, Nejmeh won the title 3 times. A new club, Olympic Beirut, was formed by Taha Koleilat during that period of time. It signed many big players, like Pierre Issa, Youssef Mohamad, and a number of Brazilian talents. OB won the championship in 2003, then it quickly faded away. Afterwards, Nejmeh and Ansar would, one after the other, win the championships before the rise of Ahed in 2006. Ahed receives support from Hezbollah. It won the championship three years in a row, in 2008, 2009, and 2010, then it was Safa’s turn for 2 years. Since 2017, Ahed won 4 of the 5 Lebanese championships. Only in 2021 did it slow down, allowing for Ansar to be crowned champions. Ahed’s president these past few years, Tamim Sleiman, was the former president of the Sad handball club. He was known for making good recruitment decisions.”

 

 

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