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;85 years ago (31 March 1939)
Ground Safa Stadium [lower-alpha 1]
Capacity4,000
ChairmanRiad Atallah
Manager Bassem Marmar
League Lebanese Premier League
2023–24 Lebanese Premier League, 4th of 12
Website Club website
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 in Beirut, Lebanon, that competes in the Lebanese Premier League. Founded in 1939, they have won three league titles, three domestic cups, one Super Cup, and two Elite Cups; they also reached the 2008 AFC Cup final. [2]

Contents

Safa is primarily supported by the Druze community. [3] [4] [5] Given their fanbase extends well in Mount Lebanon, including the city of Aley, they play the Mountain derby with Akhaa Ahli Aley.

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)

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. [8] However, following Shabab Bourj's withdrawal from the league, they were relegated in place of Safa. [9] Safa also narrowly avoided relegation the following season, finishing 10th above Salam Zgharta on account of their positive head-to-head record. [10]

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–presentJoma

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, [11] 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 31 August 2024 [12]

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

No.Pos.NationPlayer
3 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein El Dor
6 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Kassem Hayek
8 MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ghazi Honeine
16 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hassan Chaitou
20 FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Khaled Takaji
30 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Sharafeddine
33 DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Andrew Sawaya
MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Houssein Rida
GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Christian Awkar
FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Haydar
DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Khalil Khamis
DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Zein
MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Felix Michel Melki
GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Mostafa Matar
No.Pos.NationPlayer
DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Abbas Assi
MF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Jihad Ayoub
FW Flag of Palestine.svg  PLE Islam Batran
MF Flag of Sierra Leone.svg  SLE Rodney Michael
MF Flag of Tunisia.svg  TUN Houssem Louati
MF Flag of Cameroon.svg  CMR Guy Claude Eke
FW Flag of Cameroon.svg  CMR Jerome Etame
FW Flag of Kenya.svg  KEN Benson Omala
FW Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Kassas
GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Ali Hallal
GK Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Hussein Hajj Hasan
Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Sajed Faraj
DF Flag of Lebanon.svg  LBN Mohammed Hayek

Notable players

Players in international competitions
CompetitionPlayerNational team
1996 AFC Asian Cup Yasser Sibai Flag of Syria.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
1992–93: Withdrew in first round
2000–01: Withdrew in first round

Managerial history

See also

Notes

  1. Only used as a training ground

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