Kaizer Chiefs will play Sunday’s African Confederation Cup clash against Al Masry at the Suez Stadium, avoiding visiting one of the most infamous venues on the continent.
Chiefs are away in Egypt in a tough start to the group phase of the competition and will play at a stadium used for both the 2006 and 2019 Africa Cup of Nations finals.
Ordinarily, Al Masry play their matches in Port Said at the northern end of the Suez Canal, on the Mediterranean Sea, but a new stadium in the city is being built and is not yet ready.
Al Masry SC vs Kaizer Chiefs FC.
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The old Al Masry Stadium was demolished four years ago but had been mostly shut since the infamous riot in February 2012, resulting in the deaths of 72 visiting Al Ahly fans, alongside an Al Masry supporter and a police officer, making it the deadliest tragedy in Egyptian sporting history.
Masry fans were armed with stones, and some carried knives. They attacked Ahly fans, who tried to flee, but were unable to do so, as at least some of the stadium gates were locked.
Some were stabbed and clubbed, while others were thrown off the stands or died in stampeding, trying to escape through a closed stadium gate in the back of the stands.
The deaths were caused by stab wounds, brain haemorrhages, and concussions, and more than 500 were injured. Al Ahly players had to run from the pitch to safety in their change room after being chased.
It has since been claimed the violence was orchestrated by police angry at the role Al Ahly Ultras had played in the Arab Spring and the prominent role they took in the demonstration that saw the toppling of President Hosni Mubarak.
The stadium was banned from hosting any official football matches afterwards, with an exception made in 2018 when it hosted all Al Masry home fixtures in their CAF Confederation Cup campaigns during the 2018 and 2018–19 seasons. The last official match hosted by the stadium was played in December 2018.
New Al Masry Stadium will accommodate 12 000 spectators, but in the meantime, the club have played their home games at various venues, predominantly at Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria.
