Safa SC

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Safa
Al-Safa' SC.png
Full nameSafa Sporting Club
Nickname(s)النسور (The Eagles) [1]
Short nameSafa
Founded31 March 1939;86 years ago (31 March 1939)
Ground Safa Stadium
Capacity4,000
ChairmanRiad Atallah
Manager Hussein Tahan
League Lebanese Premier League
2024–25 Lebanese Premier League, 2nd of 12
Website safasc.com
Soccerball current event.svg Current season

Safa Sporting Club (Arabic : نادي الصفاء الرياضي, lit.  'The Purity Sporting Club') is a football club based in Wata El Msaytbeh, a district of Beirut, Lebanon. Competing in the Lebanese Premier League, the club was founded in 1939 and have since won three league titles, three domestic cups, one Super Cup, and two Elite Cups. Safa also finished runners-up in the 2008 AFC Cup. [2]

Contents

Safa is primarily supported by the Druze community, [3] [4] [5] and maintains a strong fanbase throughout Mount Lebanon. As Akhaa Ahli Aley is also based in the Mount Lebanon region, specifically in Aley, matches between the two clubs are referred to as the "Mountain derby" due to their shared regional support.

History

Early history (1933–1961)

Founded in 1933 at an amateur level in the Wata El-Museitbeh of Beirut, Safa Sporting Club was officially established in 1939 by seven people: Maher Wahab, Anis Naaim, Hasib Al-Jerdi, Amin Haidar, Chafik Nader, Toufik Al-Zouhairy and Adib Haidar. [6]

On 23 December 1948, Safa obtained the official membership and license from the government as a private association. [6] In the same year, the club was affiliated to the Lebanese Football Association and was ranked within the Second Division. [7] In 1961, Safa was promoted to the First Division.[ citation needed ]

Recent history (2021–present)

On 4 May 2012, after defeating Nejmeh, Safa were crowned Lebanese Premier League champions for the first time in 2011–12. [8] They were crowned league champions for the second consecutive time in 2012–13, after defeating Ahed 3–1 on 19 May 2013. [9] Safa also won the 2012–13 Lebanese FA Cup, following a 2–1 win against Shabab Sahel in the final, achieving a domestic double for the first time. [10]

After finishing the 2021–22 Lebanese Premier League in 11th place, Safa were due to be relegated to the Second Division for the first time. [11] However, following Shabab Bourj's withdrawal from the league, they were relegated in place of Safa. [12] Safa also narrowly avoided relegation the following season, finishing 10th above Salam Zgharta on account of their positive head-to-head record. [13]

Kit manufacturers

The following is a list of kit manufacturers worn by Safa.

PeriodKit manufacturer
1999–2008 Puma
2008–2010 Adidas
2010–2011 Lotto
2011–2015 Joma
2016–2017 Sportika SA
2017–2018 Jako
2018–2024 Joma
2024- Kelme

Stadium

Safa Stadium
ملعب نادي الصفاء الرياضي
Safa SC
LocationWata El-Museitbeh
Coordinates 33°52′29″N35°29′31″E / 33.87472°N 35.49194°E / 33.87472; 35.49194
Capacity 4,000
Opened1948

The Safa Stadium opened in 1948, and has a capacity of 4,000 spectators. Located in the Wata El-Museitbeh district of Beirut, the stadium is five minutes from the Beirut–Rafic Hariri International Airport. While the stadium is of Safa's property, the club plays in various other stadiums around the country.[ citation needed ]

Club rivalries

Safa has important rivalries with Ansar and Nejmeh, both being based in Beirut. Safa also plays the Mountain derby with Akhaa Ahli, [14] as Akhaa is based in Aley, a city in Mount Lebanon, and Safa's support comes from the Druze community in Lebanon, who mainly live in Chouf and Aley districts.[ citation needed ]

Players

Current squad

As of 21 August 2025 [15]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.Pos.NationPlayer
1 GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Hallal
4 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Mohammed Hayek
6 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Kassem Hayek
8 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ghazi Honeine
14 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Karim Jaafar
15 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Abdallah Doueik
30 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Sharafeddine
33 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Andrew Sawaya
43 FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Haidar
50 FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Khaled Takaji
70 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Abbas Assi
No.Pos.NationPlayer
77 FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Haydar
— MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Mannaa
— GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hassan Ayoub
— GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Abdulkarim Saleh
— MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Habib Shweikh
— FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hassan Mehanna
— FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Markabawi
— FW Flag of Palestine.svg  PLE Adnan Salloum
— DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Saad Chweiki
— FW Flag of Nigeria.svg  NGA Eze Vincent Okeuhie
— FW Flag of Cameroon.svg  CMR Tidiane Camara

Notable players

Players in international competitions
CompetitionPlayerNational team
1996 AFC Asian Cup Yasser Sibai Flag of the United Arab Republic (1958-1971), Flag of Syria (1980-2024).svg  Syria
2000 AFC Asian Cup Youssef Mohamad Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Ahmad Naamani Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
2019 AFC Asian Cup Ahmad Taktouk Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
Mohamed Zein Tahan Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon
2023 AFC Asian Cup Hassan Chaitou Flag of Lebanon.svg  Lebanon

Honours

Domestic

Continental

Other achievements

Performance in AFC competitions

2008: Final
2009: Round of 16
2012: Group stage
2013: Group stage
2014: Round of 16
2025–26: Ongoing
1992–93: Withdrew in first round
2000–01: Withdrew in first round

Managerial history

See also

References

  1. ↑ Arab-Sport.net | (13 October 2017). "بعزيمة النسور | الصفاء يعود من صيدا بثوب البطل". عرب سبورتس. Archived from the original on 19 March 2022. Retrieved 24 April 2019.
  2. ↑ "AFC Cup 2017: Match day one - Playoff and group stage preview | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Archived from the original on 31 March 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
  3. ↑ Maugendre, Axel (31 August 2018), "Ethnography of the Lebanese Football Clubs" (PDF), Athens Journal of Sports, 5 (3): 213–226, doi:10.30958/AJSPO.5-3-3, archived from the original (PDF) on 18 July 2019
  4. ↑ Montague, James (24 October 2007). "In Lebanon, even soccer is tainted by sectarian strife". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 17 February 2015. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  5. ↑ Alami, Mona (1 September 2009). "Religious about football". Archived from the original on 19 April 2011. Retrieved 15 October 2010.
  6. 1 2 "فريق: الصفاء بيروت". www.kooora.com. Archived from the original on 5 April 2018. Retrieved 20 July 2019.
  7. ↑ "منتديات كووورة". forum.kooora.com. Archived from the original on 2 September 2021. Retrieved 27 December 2020.
  8. ↑ @annahar (4 May 2012). "نادي "الصفاء" بطل لبنان في كرة القدم بعد فوزه على نادي "النجمة"" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  9. ↑ "الصفاء بطلا لدوري لبنان للمرة الثانية". الجزيرة نت (in Arabic). Retrieved 12 April 2025.
  10. ↑ "الصفاء يقهر شباب الساحل ويتوج بكأس لبنان ويحرز الثنائية للمرة الأولى في تاريخه". كووورة (in Arabic). 10 July 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2025.
  11. ↑ "بالصور: الصفاء اللبناني يهبط لأول مرة في تاريخه". كووورة. 17 May 2022. Archived from the original on 17 May 2022. Retrieved 17 May 2022.
  12. ↑ "شطب كافة نتائج شباب البرج وإسقاطه إلى الدرجة الثانية". Elsport News (in Arabic). Archived from the original on 17 July 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  13. ↑ "اتحاد كرة القدم اللبناني يصدر قرارات حاسمة". كووورة. 22 March 2023. Archived from the original on 29 May 2023. Retrieved 29 May 2023.
  14. ↑ "جولة دربي الجبل... وملامسة اللقب". Al-Joumhouria. Archived from the original on 19 June 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2019.
  15. ↑ "Safa SC". Global Sports Archive. Archived from the original on 28 September 2022. Retrieved 8 October 2022.
  16. ↑ Diab, Rami Abou (9 November 2020). "Safa SC appoint new coach". FA Lebanon. Archived from the original on 9 November 2020. Retrieved 9 November 2020.
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