Al Ahly to return from Spain by private jet ahead of Egyptian Premier League

Al Ahly will return to Cairo from their pre-season camp in Spain by private jet, with the club seeking to save time before the Egyptian Premier League begins.

The decision has been taken because of the tight schedule facing the team after the end of their Spanish training camp. Al Ahly will play Barcelona in the Joan Gamper Trophy on 19 August before travelling back to Egypt.

The Egyptian Premier League is due to start on 21 August, leaving only a short period between the meeting with Barcelona and the opening of the domestic campaign.

Al Ahly’s delegation will travel to Spain on Thursday for the club’s overseas preparations. The camp is scheduled to run from 6 to 20 August and will include the high-profile fixture against Barcelona at Camp Nou on 19 August.

The match will form part of the 61st edition of the Joan Gamper Trophy, one of the best-known friendly competitions in European football.

The Al Ahly board, led by president Mahmoud El Khatib, has appointed board member Tarek Qandil to head the club’s football delegation in Spain.

The draw for the Egyptian Premier League is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, 5 August.

The encounter with Barcelona will give Al Ahly the opportunity to add a notable occasion to their history when the two sides meet at Camp Nou. Although the Joan Gamper Trophy is a friendly tournament, it is an important annual event for Barcelona supporters and is used by the Catalan club to present its team to fans at the start of a new season.

The competition was established in 1966 on the initiative of Barcelona president Enric Llaudet. It was created in honour of the club’s Swiss founder, Joan Gamper, who founded Barcelona in 1899 and was among the figures responsible for establishing the club that would later become one of the biggest in world football.

The tournament has been held every year since then and has become a traditional part of Barcelona’s preparations before the new season begins.

In its early years, the Joan Gamper Trophy featured four teams. The competition was played through semi-finals and a final, with an additional match used to determine third and fourth place.

Barcelona changed the format in 1997, reducing the event to a single match between the Catalan side and an invited opponent. That system remains in place.

Al Ahly’s private flight to Cairo is therefore intended to ensure the squad has as much time as possible to prepare for the start of the Egyptian Premier League after its demanding Spanish schedule, which includes one of the most prominent friendly fixtures in the club’s history.