Citing security concerns, the Competitions Committee of the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) on Sunday decided to advance Cairo’s football derby by 24 hours.
Zamalek and Ahly, Egypt’s largest and most popular football teams, were scheduled to meet on 31 December during the first half of Egypt’s Premiere League.
The teams will play instead on Thursday, 30 December, at 6PM, as per a request by the security apparatus, said EFA’s website.
Observers believe authorities do not want the game to coincide with Egypt’s New Year celebrations, which usually see intensified security measures.
This is the second alteration to be made to the game’s date. It was initially slated for 26 November, but was moved to 31 December in order to avoid coinciding with the recent People’s Assembly elections.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
