Author name: Sandisiwe Msibi

AFTER a year’s absence, Egyptian giants Al Ahly are back on African club basketball’s biggest stage – the Basketball Africa League (BAL), and they will aim to be as impactful as they were in their championship season two years ago.

On Saturday, Al Ahly of Egypt, the 2023 BAL champions, will make their highly anticipated return to the competition. With their third appearance, they rank first for the most trips to the BAL by an Egyptian club.

Alongside Petro de Luanda, they are one of only two clubs this season to have previously won a BAL championship.

A Legacy Born in 1930

The club was founded in 1930 and is one of the oldest basketball clubs in Africa. This is a club that has seen nearly a century of Egyptian and African basketball history unfold.

The 2023 BAL title was the club’s second African title after their triumph in the 2016 FIBA Africa Champions Cup in Cairo. In that 2016 victory, they became the first Egyptian team to win the competition in two decades.

The Return

Al Ahly’s last appearance in the BAL was in 2024, where they reached the playoffs but fell short of defending their 2023 title. They entered the postseason as the No. 1 seed. After winning the Nile Conference with a 5-1 record, including a dominant 94-71 closing win over Bangui Sporting Club. But their campaign ended unexpectedly in the quarterfinals with an 86-77 defeat to Libya’s Al Ahly Ly at BK Arena in Kigali. 

Domestically, the 2023-24 season was equally frustrating. The Reds lost both the Premier League and the Egyptian Cup final to rivals Al Ittihad Alexandria.

The 2025 season saw them miss out on BAL qualification entirely, a rare stumble for a club accustomed to dominating Egyptian and African basketball. 

Al Ahly secured their return by winning the 2024-25 Egyptian Basketball Super League, capturing their eighth national title with a hard-fought 3-2 finals series win over rivals Al Ittihad Alexandria.

The Roster

The roster has significant new faces. Jonathan Jordan, a former FUS Rabat guard, arrives to run the show. The naturalised Democratic Republic of Congo point guard is no stranger to the BAL. He played for FUS Rabat in the 2024 and 2025 seasons, averaging 14.4 points, 4.6 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game across 14 BAL appearances while shooting efficiently from the field.

Another notable new face is that of Osayi Osifo, who last played for the Austin Spurs in the G League. The 6’9″ forward has no prior BAL experience. However, his G League resume includes averages of 5.6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game in the 2025-26 season with the Spurs.

Egyptian national team big man Ahmed Khalaf also crosses over from rivals Al-Ittihad Alexandria, adding size and interior presence.

Head coach Linos Gavriel signed a two-year deal with Al Ahly in July 2025, replacing Agustín Julbe. The seasoned coach made his mark on African basketball in the 2010s by coaching Tunisian side Etoile Sportive de Rades to second place in the 2014 FIBA Africa Champions Cup, and the previous year led Etoile Sportive du Sahel to the same position.

He also led Bahraini side Manama Club to the 2023 FIBA West Asia Super League title. In his first full campaign with Al Ahly, he delivered a domestic championship, guiding the club to their eighth Super League title. Assistant coach Ahmed El Beltagy remains from the 2023 BAL championship staff, providing continuity between the old regime and the new.

The Sahara Conference

Al Ahly will open their campaign today against Club Africain, before facing ASC Ville de Dakar, Maktown Flyers, JCA Kings, and finally FUS Rabat in the Moroccan capital. The final game against hosts FUS Rabat is already being billed as a must-watch. When the two sides last faced off during the 2024 season, FUS Rabat emerged victorious with an 89-78 win at BK Arena in Kigali.

This game will see Jonathan Jordan facing his former team, bringing insider knowledge of FUS Rabat’s system and tendencies. Jordan spent two seasons with the Moroccan club, leading them to back-to-back quarterfinal appearances. He knows every set, every defensive rotation, and exactly how they operate in the clutch. That intelligence could prove invaluable in a tournament where margins are razor-thin.

Can They Win the BAL Title?

The 2023 champions bring back the DNA of a title team. Ehab Amin’s offensive command, Seif Samir’s rim protection, and the defensive identity that defined their success.  But the 2024 quarterfinal exit proved that pedigree alone guarantees nothing.

What makes this roster compelling is the blend of BAL experience and fresh firepower.

Coach Gavriel, who delivered an unbeaten domestic campaign, now faces his ultimate test on the continental stage, where one bad game can end a season. The pieces fit. The hunger is there. Whether that translates to a second crown depends on whether this blended roster of veterans and newcomers can develop chemistry fast enough in the eight-day tournament.

In a conference where every team earned their place through blood and sweat, there are no soft matchups. History says never count Al Ahly out. The 2026 BAL will reveal if history repeats.