Zamalek Club issued an official statement, announcing its apology for participating in the African Club Volleyball Championship scheduled for this April in Cairo due to the non-registration of its professional players.
The text of the statement was as follows:
As part of the Zamalek Club Board of Directors’ efforts to participate in the African Club Championship, which will be held in April 2024 in Cairo.
-When the club’s volleyball administrative body terminates the procedures for participation in the tournament, and when registering professional players, and for reasons beyond the control of the club or the will of the Egyptian Volleyball Federation, the African Confederation refuses to register professionals according to the following: –
-Serbian player Milan Katic was registered in the second registration period previously scheduled by the Egyptian Federation, during the period from 1-15-2024 until 1-31-2024.
The Libyan player, Mohamed Boulbaba, was contracted during the period of chairmanship of the club’s temporary committee. He was not registered until the second registration period, and he was registered in the same period previously specified by the Egyptian Federation.
-Professional players have been registered to hold the African Championship, in accordance with what happened the previous year in Tunisia in the second half of May, and thus the African Union’s condition has been fulfilled that a period of three months must pass before foreign players participate with their teams in any African Championship in which they participate. The club.
Whereas the International Federation recently sent a letter to the Egyptian Volleyball Federation officially requesting that it end the local season before 4/28/2024 and the African season before 5/5/2024 in view of the international commitments for the Paris Olympics Challenge qualifiers.
Based on this letter, the African Union set the date for holding the African Championship for men from 4/12/2024 to 5/5/2024, and the women’s championship from 4/24/2024 until 5/5/2024.
Accordingly, the period for the participation of foreign players did not exceed three months, according to the regulations of the African Union.
-At the request of the Zamalek Club, the Egyptian Federation submitted the matter to the African Union to exclude the conditions for the participation of foreign players this season only, because the change of dates was made by the International Federation, which is beyond the control of the club and the Egyptian Volleyball Federation.
However, the African Union refused to register these players in the tournament for all clubs, such as players from Zamalek, Al-Ahly, and the Algerian team, and sent this refusal to their country’s federations.
Accordingly, the Zamalek Club asked the Egyptian Federation to refer the matter to the International Federation, which has already done so, but the International Federation acknowledged that this is an internal matter of the African Union and its regulations.
In the same context, Zamalek Club inquired about the professional player in the club’s first women’s volleyball team, and her registration was confirmed to be valid.
Since this refusal to have foreign players participate in the men’s team seriously harms the interest of the team and the plan of advance preparation for participation in the tournament, and based on that, the Zamalek Club decided:
1- Apology for participating in the African Club Championship for Men, held during the period 12-24-4-2024.
2- Participation in the African Club Championship for Women, held during the period from 4/24/2024 to 5/5/2024.