Ismaily SC suffer shock relegation from Egyptian Premier League

Ismaily’s long-standing stay in Egypt’s top flight has come to a painful end after a 2-1 defeat to Wadi Degla on Tuesday confirmed their relegation to the second division.

The three-time Egyptian champions, who narrowly avoided the drop last season when relegation was suspended in the Egyptian Pro League, were unable to escape the fate this time.

They finished bottom of the four-team relegation group with 19 points and, with three matches still to play, are now mathematically doomed.

It marks only the second relegation in Ismaily’s history, and their first since the 1957–58 campaign, when the club went down in the aftermath of the Suez Crisis and the departure of several key players. They returned to the top tier shortly afterwards.

Founded in 1924 and based in the city of Ismailia on the banks of the Suez Canal, Ismaily remain one of Egypt’s most historic clubs. Their last league title came in the 2001–02 season, while they also boast two Egypt Cup triumphs.

The club holds a special place in African football history, having become the first Egyptian side to win the continent’s premier club competition—then known as the African Cup of Champions Clubs—in 1969. That achievement still stands as a landmark moment in Egyptian football.

However, in recent years Ismaily have been weighed down by financial difficulties, at one point even appealing directly to supporters by publishing bank account details in a bid to raise funds.

For Wadi Degla, the 2-1 victory lifts them to 48 points and top of the relegation group, keeping their survival hopes alive.