A Kuwait Club player finds himself trapped between two Kazma opponents.

KUWAIT CITY, Sept 21: The 40th edition of the Arab Clubs Handball Championship for league and cup winners concludes today at Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Sports Complex, with the final of the Arab Cup set for 6:30 p.m. between defending champion Kuwait Club and Kazma.

Earlier, at 4:00 p.m., Egypt’s Al Ahly Bank will face Iraq’s Al-Hashd in the third-place match.

Kuwait Club aims to secure its third consecutive Arab Cup, having first lifted the trophy in 2023 with a 33-24 win over Egypt’s Zamalek in Dammam, and a second in 2024 by defeating Al-Salmiya at Sheikh Saad Al-Abdullah Sports Complex. Kuwait Club also holds two international titles: Gulf Champion and Asian Champion.

Kazma is chasing its first Arab Cup, having previously won the Asian Club Championship twice. Today’s final promises a fierce “Kuwaiti derby” in Arab handball.

The two sides previously met in the preliminary stage of Group A, with Kuwait Club winning 33-24. But today’s final leaves no margin for error—the winner lifts the Arab Cup, while the loser settles for second place.

Kuwait Club topped Group A with full points, defeating Al-Taliya, Kazma, Al-Shabab, and Naft Al-Basra. They beat Qatar SC in the quarter-finals and overcame Al-Hashd 35-24 in the semi-finals. Mohamed Amer was named Best Player.

Kazma finished second in the preliminary stage with wins over Al-Shabab, Naft Al-Basra, and Al-Taliya. The team defeated Al-Salibikhat 31-24 in the quarter-finals and claimed a 29-23 semi-final victory over Al Ahly Bank. Hani Kaki earned the Best Player award.

Esperance of Tunisia leads the championship’s all-time winners list with seven titles, followed by Egypt’s Al Ahly with five. Tunisia’s Etoile du Sahel and Algeria’s MC Oran have three each. Two titles each have been claimed by MC Alger (Algeria), Al-Ahli (Saudi Arabia), Club Africain (Tunisia), Al-Khaleej (Saudi Arabia), and Kuwait Club.

Single-title winners include the UAE’s Al Ain, Qatar’s Al Rayyan and Al-Gharafa, Egypt’s Zamalek and Sporting, Bahrain’s Al-Ahli, and Tunisia’s Saqqiya Al-Zeit.

Meanwhile, Kuwait’s U-17 national handball team was eliminated from the first Asian U-17 Championship in Amman, Jordan, a qualifier for next month’s World Cup in Morocco, following a 26-22 defeat to Qatar.

The team had played four matches, winning its opener against Hong Kong but losing three, including two losses to Bahrain and Iran in the preliminary round.

By Khalid Al-Enezi

Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff