Intercontinental: Nuno Santos scores twice as Sundowns defeat Al Ahli 2-1

Mamelodi Sundowns defeated Al Ahli 2-1 on Saturday, September 19, in Pretoria, securing their place in the FIFA Challenger Cup, the next stage of the intercontinental tournament. Nuno Santos scored both goals for the reigning African champions at Loftus Versfeld Stadium.

The Portuguese midfielder opened the scoring with a powerful header in the 17th minute. Al Ahli equalized just two minutes later with an own goal from goalkeeper Ronwen Williams, who was deflected by the ball after a shot from Feras Al Brikan.

Santos restored the lead for the South Africans in the 80th minute, again with a header. This second goal secured Sundowns the FIFA Africa-Asia-Pacific Cup and a ticket to the next stage of the global club competition.

Despite being the Asian champions, Al Ahli had several opportunities in the first half. The Saudi team, with Ivan Toney leading the attack, failed to capitalize on their chances before Santos’s decisive goal in the final ten minutes.

Mamelodi Sundowns is participating in the competition as the CAF champion. The intercontinental cup brings together the champions from the six confederations and leads, through various stages, to a final against the UEFA representative.

In the Challenger Cup, Sundowns will face the winner of the Americas Derby between Toluca, the Concacaf champion, and the future winner of the 2026 Copa Libertadores. The winner of this match will advance to the final against Paris Saint-Germain, the reigning European champion. FIFA has yet to announce the venue and dates for the last three matches.