AFC Challenge League: Abdelfattah and African stars help Al Kuwait win title after extra-time

Egyptian winger Amr Ahmed Abdelfattah was the hero for Al Kuwait on Wednesday, scoring in extra-time as his club emerged victorious by a 4-3 score over Cambodian club Svay Rieng in a thrilling AFC Challenge League final. The former Al Masry and El Gouna attacker was named Best Player in the competition following the victory.

هدف الكويت الكويتي الثالث بمرمى سفاي رينغ الكمبودي

نهائي كأس التحدي الآسيوي لكرة القدم 2026#الكويت #الرياضية #وزارة_الإعلام_الكويت pic.twitter.com/7163iK5ulg

— القناة الرياضية (@kuwaitsporttv) May 13, 2026

Players from three North African nations were on the victorious team, with former Tunisia international striker Taha Khenissi joining Moroccan midfielder Mehdi Berrahma as well as Congolese defender Arsène Zola as champions. Abdelfattah was the star of the competition, however, with his crucial goal leveling the match at 3-3 in extra-time after Svay Rieng took an early lead.

It was a disastrous start for the Kuwaiti club, who fell two goals behind inside ten minutes at their home stadium to the Cambodian club who were led by striker Kwame Peprah. The Ghanaian striker, formerly of Orlando Pirates and King Faisal, finished as the competition’s top scorer but went quiet at the crucial moment.

Abdelfattah inspires AFC Challenge League final comeback

But after halftime, it did not take long for the comeback effort to get going for the hosts. Berrahma pulled a goal back less than three minutes into the second half following a free kick.

بعد العودة إلى تقنية الـVAR.. الحكم يحتسب الهدف الأول للكويت عن طريق المهدي بن رحمة#الكويت_سفاي #نادي_الكويت #كأس_التحدي_الآسيوي pic.twitter.com/OciDO5NN8Y

— atv SPORTS ⁦🇰🇼 (@atvkw_Sports) May 13, 2026

And then it was Abdelfattah who showed his quality. After receiving a long ball on the left wing, the Egyptian produced some excellent dribbling moves before sending in an excellent cross.

Bahrain national team legend Mohamed Marhoon cleanly collected the cross and then fired in the equalizer to pull his team level.

التعادل سريعا للأبيض من البحريني محمد مرهون 🔥 #الكويت_سيفاي pic.twitter.com/2FzX0YAEX8

— كرة الكويت 🇰🇼 (@kuwait_PLg) May 13, 2026

But the Cambodian visitors did not go away easily. After holding on until full time to require extra-time, Svay Rieng surprisingly struck in the 96th minute through a Brazilian combination that ended with Cristian Silveira’s finish.

But Abdelfattah’s spectacular drive from distance leveled the match three minutes later and in the 110th minute, it was Kuwaiti veteran forward Yousef Nasser who put his team up for good with the winning goal.

° عمرو عبدالفتاح يحصد على لقب افضل لاعب بالبطولة 🤩🤍
.#نادي_الكويت #kuwaitclub pic.twitter.com/uouhDGKQNx

— نادي الكويت الرياضي (@kuwaitclub) May 13, 2026

Al Kuwait will take home $1 million for winning Asia’s third-tier club competition, and are looking to complete another historic season as the dominant club in their country. They currently lead the Kuwaiti Premier League by twelve points with four rounds remaining and also remain in contention to win the country’s Emir Cup.

They will also face Al Arabi in the Crown Prince Cup on May 18. The one blemish on their record this season was a penalty shootout defeat to Al Qadsia in the country’s Super Cup.