Egyptian football fans are eagerly readying themselves to return to the stands on September 17 after a three-year hiatus.
The Egyptian Premier League match in Alexandria between home team Al Ittihad and Cairo's Entag El Harby comes as cabinet spokesman Sharaf Sultan confirmed Interior Ministry approval for a plan to allow a limited number of pre-screened fans to attend selected domestic matches this season — which began on July 31.
"This is a careful process that is not being done randomly," said Karam Kurdi, a board member of the Egyptian Football Association. "The fans who will attend the matches are going to be on a list of vetted names presented by the clubs to the security services."
Mr Kurdi explained that fan cards will be issued only to ticket subscribers without a criminal record and who have never been flagged for rioting at matches.
Egypt's government imposed its first ban on football audiences in February 2012 after a riot broke out inside Port Said stadium between the home team Al Masry and the reigning league champions Al Ahly, killing 73 of Al Ahly's supporters.
A return to normal play was due to start in 2015 but the ban was reimposed after 22 fans died in a stampede at the 30,000-capacity Air Defense stadium in suburban Cairo during a match between Zamalek and city rivals ENPPI.
Only 5,000 spectators were allowed to purchase tickets for that match, leading to a riot by Zamalek "ultras", as diehard club supporters are known, desperate to see their team play live.
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Read more:
Egypt to lift ban on attending football matches, six years after Port Said stadium disaster
Egypt to allow football fans to attend matches at stadiums in phased manner
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“The return of the masses to games will not be done randomly as in previous years, which led to catastrophic incidents,” said Mr Kurdi.
New regulations will not allow the use of fireworks or the shouting of slogans deemed inflammatory by authorities, he said.
Players say the return of spectators to stadiums will bring life back to the game in Egypt.
"Of course, we play better games when the stadiums are full and have enthusiastic audiences," said Hosni Abed Rabbo, a 34-year-old defensive midfielder for Ismaily Sporting Club. "Allowing the fans back means a return to the spirit of football."
But some fans are not convinced they will return to the stadium.
"As the game ended, the fans of the Port Said club went down to the pitch and attacked us with firecrackers and bottles. And the police did nothing to stop them,” said Youssef Abdul Aziz, 28, recalling the tragic day at Port Said stadium. “This is how the whole stadium was set on fire.”
"I succeeded in escaping from a back gate, but I lost ten friends that day," said Mr Abdul Aziz, who was 22 at the time and a member of the Al Ahly ultras — who took to chanting anti-police slogans during the tumultuous revolts against former presidents Hosni Mubarak and Mohamed Morsi.
Under pressure from club management and security bodies, both Al Ahly and cross-town rivals Zamalek ultras have were disbanded.
"I have lost my passion," lamented Mr Abdul Aziz. "[Now] the audience will be limited to commercial sponsors of the clubs and their patrons, not the real fans — the ultras who love the players and the sport of football in Egypt."
Ziad Akl, a senior researcher at the Egyptian Studies Unit in Al Ahram Centre for Political and Strategic Studies believes the impetus decision to re-open stadiums to fans comes from the desire of club owners to monetise their investment.
"You have investors wanting to make money out of the Egyptian League which necessarily requires the presence of fans," said Mr Akl. "It's a complex network of interests that make up the industry of football and at this moment this matrix includes elements in the government who see the potential for sports as a driver of economic growth."
Mr Akl believes that the disbanding of most ultras groups associated with inter-team violence has allowed the security forces to permit the return of spectators to the stadiums.
"Last September's World Cup pre-qualifying game against Uganda witnessed the attendance of sixty thousand fans in Alexandria," said Mr Akl. "The Egyptian security was able to secure that number — so the cap of five thousand is a framework to start off with as money returns to the football sector in Egypt."
TOURNAMENT INFO
Women’s World Twenty20 Qualifier
Jul 3- 14, in the Netherlands
The top two teams will qualify to play at the World T20 in the West Indies in November
UAE squad
Humaira Tasneem (captain), Chamani Seneviratne, Subha Srinivasan, Neha Sharma, Kavisha Kumari, Judit Cleetus, Chaya Mughal, Roopa Nagraj, Heena Hotchandani, Namita D’Souza, Ishani Senevirathne, Esha Oza, Nisha Ali, Udeni Kuruppuarachchi
'Brazen'
Director: Monika Mitchell
Starring: Alyssa Milano, Sam Page, Colleen Wheeler
Rating: 3/5
Company%20Profile
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NO OTHER LAND
Director: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham, Rachel Szor, Hamdan Ballal
Stars: Basel Adra, Yuval Abraham
Rating: 3.5/5
A MINECRAFT MOVIE
Director: Jared Hess
Starring: Jack Black, Jennifer Coolidge, Jason Momoa
Rating: 3/5
Globalization and its Discontents Revisited
Joseph E. Stiglitz
W. W. Norton & Company
Tuesday's fixtures
Kyrgyzstan v Qatar, 5.45pm
The specs: Lamborghini Aventador SVJ
Price, base: Dh1,731,672
Engine: 6.5-litre V12
Gearbox: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 770hp @ 8,500rpm
Torque: 720Nm @ 6,750rpm
Fuel economy: 19.6L / 100km
THREE
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The%20specs
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The years Ramadan fell in May
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Match info
Manchester United 1 (Van de Beek 80') Crystal Palace 3 (Townsend 7', Zaha pen 74' & 85')
Man of the match Wilfried Zaha (Crystal Palace)
if you go
The flights
Air Astana flies direct from Dubai to Almaty from Dh2,440 per person return, and to Astana (via Almaty) from Dh2,930 return, both including taxes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Ritz-Carlton Almaty cost from Dh1,944 per night including taxes; and in Astana the new Ritz-Carlton Astana (www.marriott) costs from Dh1,325; alternatively, the new St Regis Astana costs from Dh1,458 per night including taxes.
When to visit
March-May and September-November
Visas
Citizens of many countries, including the UAE do not need a visa to enter Kazakhstan for up to 30 days. Contact the nearest Kazakhstan embassy or consulate.
RESULTS
Bantamweight: Jalal Al Daaja (JOR) beat Hamza Bougamza (MAR)
Catchweight 67kg: Mohamed El Mesbahi (MAR) beat Fouad Mesdari (ALG)
Lightweight: Abdullah Mohammed Ali (UAE) beat Abdelhak Amhidra (MAR)
Catchweight 73kg: Mosatafa Ibrahim Radi (PAL) beat Yazid Chouchane (ALG)
Middleweight: Yousri Belgaroui (TUN) beat Badreddine Diani (MAR)
Catchweight 78KG: Rashed Dawood (UAE) beat Adnan Bushashy (ALG)
Middleweight: Sallah-Eddine Dekhissi (MAR) beat Abdel Enam (EGY)
Catchweight 65kg: Yanis Ghemmouri (ALG) beat Rachid Hazoume (MAR)
Lightweight: Mohammed Yahya (UAE) beat Azouz Anwar (EGY)
Catchweight 79kg: Souhil Tahiri (ALG) beat Omar Hussein (PAL)
Middleweight: Tarek Suleiman (SYR) beat Laid Zerhouni (ALG)
Naga
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GOLF’S RAHMBO
- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Election pledges on migration
CDU: "Now is the time to control the German borders and enforce strict border rejections"
SPD: "Border closures and blanket rejections at internal borders contradict the spirit of a common area of freedom"
How Beautiful this world is!
Skewed figures
In the village of Mevagissey in southwest England the housing stock has doubled in the last century while the number of residents is half the historic high. The village's Neighbourhood Development Plan states that 26% of homes are holiday retreats. Prices are high, averaging around £300,000, £50,000 more than the Cornish average of £250,000. The local average wage is £15,458.
2025 Fifa Club World Cup groups
Group A: Palmeiras, Porto, Al Ahly, Inter Miami.
Group B: Paris Saint-Germain, Atletico Madrid, Botafogo, Seattle.
Group C: Bayern Munich, Auckland City, Boca Juniors, Benfica.
Group D: Flamengo, ES Tunis, Chelsea, (Leon banned).
Group E: River Plate, Urawa, Monterrey, Inter Milan.
Group F: Fluminense, Borussia Dortmund, Ulsan, Mamelodi Sundowns.
Group G: Manchester City, Wydad, Al Ain, Juventus.
Group H: Real Madrid, Al Hilal, Pachuca, Salzburg.
Salah in numbers
€39 million: Liverpool agreed a fee, including add-ons, in the region of €39m (nearly Dh176m) to sign Salah from Roma last year. The exchange rate at the time meant that cost the Reds £34.3m - a bargain given his performances since.
13: The 25-year-old player was not a complete stranger to the Premier League when he arrived at Liverpool this summer. However, during his previous stint at Chelsea, he made just 13 Premier League appearances, seven of which were off the bench, and scored only twice.
57: It was in the 57th minute of his Liverpool bow when Salah opened his account for the Reds in the 3-3 draw with Watford back in August. The Egyptian prodded the ball over the line from close range after latching onto Roberto Firmino's attempted lob.
7: Salah's best scoring streak of the season occurred between an FA Cup tie against West Brom on January 27 and a Premier League win over Newcastle on March 3. He scored for seven games running in all competitions and struck twice against Tottenham.
3: This season Salah became the first player in Premier League history to win the player of the month award three times during a term. He was voted as the division's best player in November, February and March.
40: Salah joined Roger Hunt and Ian Rush as the only players in Liverpool's history to have scored 40 times in a single season when he headed home against Bournemouth at Anfield earlier this month.
30: The goal against Bournemouth ensured the Egyptian achieved another milestone in becoming the first African player to score 30 times across one Premier League campaign.
8: As well as his fine form in England, Salah has also scored eight times in the tournament phase of this season's Champions League. Only Real Madrid's Cristiano Ronaldo, with 15 to his credit, has found the net more often in the group stages and knockout rounds of Europe's premier club competition.
Top tips
Create and maintain a strong bond between yourself and your child, through sensitivity, responsiveness, touch, talk and play. “The bond you have with your kids is the blueprint for the relationships they will have later on in life,” says Dr Sarah Rasmi, a psychologist.
Set a good example. Practise what you preach, so if you want to raise kind children, they need to see you being kind and hear you explaining to them what kindness is. So, “narrate your behaviour”.
Praise the positive rather than focusing on the negative. Catch them when they’re being good and acknowledge it.
Show empathy towards your child’s needs as well as your own. Take care of yourself so that you can be calm, loving and respectful, rather than angry and frustrated.
Be open to communication, goal-setting and problem-solving, says Dr Thoraiya Kanafani. “It is important to recognise that there is a fine line between positive parenting and becoming parents who overanalyse their children and provide more emotional context than what is in the child’s emotional development to understand.”
