Zamalek win away as Al-Swehly and Saoura make winning TotalEnergies CAF Champions League starts
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Egyptian giants Zamalek opened their TotalEnergies CAF Champions League 2026/27 campaign with a 2-1 away victory over AS Port of Djibouti on Friday, while Libya’s Al-Swehly marked their continental appearance with a 1-0 win over Zanzibar’s KVZ.
Zamalek, five-time African champions, made an assured start to their first preliminary round tie by taking the lead after only five minutes through Mohamed Shehata.
The Cairo side strengthened their grip on the contest in the 37th minute when Chico Banza struck to make it 2-0 before the interval.
AS Port pulled a goal back to keep the tie alive ahead of next week’s return leg, but Zamalek will take a valuable one-goal advantage back to Egypt as they continue their pursuit of another continental title.
In Libya, Al-Swehly secured a 1-0 victory over KVZ of Zanzibar, with playmaker Abdullah Al-Arfi scoring the decisive goal in the 66th minute.
The strike carried added significance for Al-Swehly as it represented the club’s first goal in their latest African campaign and ensured they will travel for the second leg with a slender advantage.
Elsewhere on Friday, Algerian side JS Saoura also made a winning start, defeating Guinea’s Horoya 1-0 in another closely contested first-leg encounter.
The opening results underlined the fine margins expected in the preliminary round, with none of Friday’s winners establishing an overwhelming advantage ahead of the return fixtures.
The first preliminary round first legs are being played from 4-6 September, with the return matches scheduled for 11-13 September.
A total of 61 clubs entered this season’s Champions League, although defending champions Mamelodi Sundowns, Espérance de Tunis and RS Berkane received byes into the second preliminary round.
