Egyptian Football Association
CAF | |
---|---|
Short name | EFA |
Founded | 3 December 1921 |
Headquarters | Cairo |
FIFA affiliation | 1923 |
CAF affiliation | 1957 |
President | Gamal Allam |
Website | www |
The Egyptian Football Association (Arabic: الاتحاد المصري لكرة القدم) is the governing body of football in Egypt. A member of FIFA since 1923 and a founding member of CAF, the EFA has jurisdiction for the Egyptian football league system and is in charge of the men's and women's national teams.[1] The EFA headquarters is located in Gezira, Cairo. The EFA organizes the semi-professional Egyptian Second Division alongside the lower regional leagues in the third and fourth level of the league system.[2]
Controversy
[edit]Christians comprise about 5-15% of Egypt's population, the majority of whom are Coptic Orthodox Christians.[3] Despite their numbers, there are currently no Coptic members of the national football team, although there have been notable Christian members in the past, such as as Hany Ramzy. Additionally, some notable clubs are owned by the Sawiris family, a prominent Christian family in Egypt, including El Gouna FC and ZED FC.
Over the years, however, there have been numerous reports and complaints (formal and informal) from Coptic advocacy groups and community members, including Coptic Solidarity as filed to FIFA, regarding the purposeful exclusion of Christians from the league, as well as their exclusion from Egypt's national team. A similar complaint was filled by Coptic Solidarity to the International Olympic Committee concerning the exclusion of Christians from Egypt's Olympic teams. The exclusions are described as systematic, although neither FIFA nor the IOC have taken action to investigate these complaints.[4][5]
See also
[edit]- Egyptian Premier League
- Egypt Cup
- Egyptian Super Cup
- Egyptian League Cup
- Egypt national football team
- Egypt women's national football team
References
[edit]- ^ "CAF – Members Association – Egyptian Football Association". cafonline.com. CAF. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
- ^ "تاريخ الإتحاد" [Association History]. efa.com.eg (in Arabic). EFA. Archived from the original on 25 July 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
- ^ "The Copts and Their Political Implications in Egypt". www.washingtoninstitute.org. Retrieved 2018-07-23.
- ^ "Coptic Solidarity Urges FIFA to Investigate Discrimination Against Coptic Footballers in Egypt - Standard Newswire". www.standardnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2018-07-23.
- ^ "Coptic Solidarity Files Complaints with the IOC and FIFA Regarding Egypt's Religious Discrimination Against Copts in Athletics". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved 2018-07-23.
External links
[edit]- Official website
- Egypt at CAF
- Egypt at FIFA