Salam Zgharta FC

Template:Short description Template:Use dmy dates Template:Short descriptionTemplate:Template other Template:Squads sidebar Salam Zgharta Football Club (Template:Langx), known as Salam Zgharta or simply Salam, is a football club based in Zgharta, Lebanon, that competes in the Template:Lebanese football updater.

Founded in 1933 as Salam Achrafieh, the club was renamed Salam Zgharta in 1971; their supporters are primarily Maronites from the Zgharta region and other districts in North Lebanon. The club's traditional kit colours are red and black. In 2014, they won the Lebanese FA Cup, their only major trophy to date.

History

Salam Achrafieh (1933–1971)

Salam Achrafieh was a club established in Ashrafieh, a district in the northern Beirut.

In May 1933, Salam Achrafieh hosted a game against Arax and fielded a player called Spiro who wasn't living in Achrafieh. This was considered illegal at the time and the LFA disqualified Salam from the match. This decision was not welcomed by Slim, who was a well-known media personality, and tried to change the executive committee, but ended up failing as Al Nahda SC, the dominating team at the time, didn't approve of the change.

Salam Achrafieh played in the first ever Lebanese Second Division season and ended up winning the trophy. In 1937, Salam Achrafieh became the first two-times Second Division winners.

Early history (1971–1990)

Salam Zgharta was founded in 1971, after a group of football enthusiasts bought the licence of former club Salam Achrafieh (Template:Langx), based in the Achrafieh district of Beirut.

The club remained in Achrafieh until 1974, when they moved to Zgharta, in North Lebanon. They competed in the Lebanese Premier League, with Sassine Ghazale funding the club after the move. During the 1974–75 season, Antoine "Al Shakra" Fenianos was the club's first manager. Salam Zgharta's first game was at the Camille Chamoun Sports City Stadium against Nejmeh, in which Salam Zgharta lost 5–2. In their first season, the club got demoted to the second division with Riyada Wal Adab, after the early finish of the season due to start of the Lebanese Civil War.

While football in Lebanon was affected by the Lebanese Civil War, the Lebanese Football Association (LFA) split into two entities, with each organizing its own competitions in the latter stage of the war. Salam Zgharta joined the Eastern Federation and won the Lebanese FA Cup on 12 April 1987. However, following the war, the two federations re-merged and the FA Cup win was voided.

Post-war period (1990–2006)

Following the end of the Civil War, Salam Zgharta were one of the best teams in the league, with a core of players such as Fawzi Yammine and Elias Bou Nassif. The start of the 1990s was positive for the Northern club, finishing third in the 1990–91 season with 35 points. Following the expansion of the Premier League to 20 teams divided into two groups, Salam Zgharta finished the 1991–92 season as second of their group and fourth in the league standing after securing 23 points in 20 games.

In 1992, Kabalan Yammine became Salam Zgharta's president. The club was not able to replicate past success; they stayed the following two seasons in the top flight but then struggled to maintain its position in the Lebanese Premier League for financial reasons. Therefore, the club regularly played in the Lebanese Second Division. In the 1999–2000 season, Salam Zgharta finished fifth in the Lebanese Premier League, their best result under the presidency of Kabalan Yammine. In 1996, Youssef Jabbour got elected vice president. In the mid-2000s, Kabalan lost interest in the club; an election took place in October 2006, three games after the start of the 2006–07 season, and Estephan Frangieh became the president.

Estephan Frangieh's presidency (2006–present)

File:2020-21 Nejmeh vs Salam Zgharta 38.jpg

Salam Zgharta (white) against Nejmeh (red) in 2020

In the first season under Estephan Frangieh's presidency (2006–07), the club was relegated to the Second Division. Following their relegation, Frangieh invested in the club and they were promoted back into the first division in the 2007–08 season. Their stay in the first division only lasted one season as they were relegated again in the 2008–09 season. In 2009, the Merdeshiyeh Stadium was renamed Zgharta Sports Complex. The club eventually won the 2012–13 Lebanese Second Division after topping Group A, gaining promotion to the Premier League.

In their return to the Premier League in the 2013–14 season, Salam Zgharta hired Peter Meindertsma as their head coach. While the club struggled to avoid relegation in the league, they won the 2013–14 Lebanese FA Cup. In 2015, Salam Zgharta participated for the first time in the AFC Cup after winning the one-legged qualifying play-off round match against Khayr Vahdat. They went on to win one match in six games in the group stage.

In the 2016–17 season, Salam Zgharta started the campaign with a 5–2 win at home against Ansar. Salam finished runners-up, their best ever finish to date. They qualified to the 2018–19 Arab Club Champions Cup for the first time, losing against Raja Casablanca in the round of 32. In the 2020–21 seasons, after eight consecutive seasons in the top flight, Salam Zgharta were relegated to the Second Division. They were promoted in 2021–22, after finishing second in the Second Division, before being relegated back in 2022–23, finishing 11th in the Premier League.

Colors and badges

Following the move from Achrafieh to Zgharta, Salam Zgharta was known for wearing blue at home and white away. After the re-merging of the LFA in 1990, Salam Zgharta opted to change their home colours to red.

The first ever logo of Salam Zgharta was designed in 1971. It consisted of a circle with the words "Al Salam Zgharta" (Template:Langx) written in a calligraphic form to take the shape of a pigeon. The design was then changed in 2010, which conserved the round shape.

Stadium

Salam Zgharta owns the Zgharta Sports Complex. The stadium is located in the Merdeshiyeh region in Zgharta and it can host almost 5,500 people. The stadium was built by the Maronite endowment next to the Sarkis and Bakhos Church, and it was renovated in 2009. The same year, the endowment gave the right of usage of the stadium to Salam Zgharta.

The stadium faced a ban from the federation in 1999, which was lifted in 2009.

Supporters

Salam Zgharta supporters are mainly located in the Zgharta and nearby districts. They were known to cause some troubles during matches in the 1990s and 2000s.

Club rivalries

Salam Zgharta plays the North derby with Tripoli, as they are both located in the same area. Other minor rivalries take place with clubs like Ansar Howara SC and Egtmaaey but Salam Zgharta don't face them much anymore as they are not regular visitors to the first division. The first derby between Salam Zgharta and Tripoli was played on 18 December 2005, at the Rachid Karame Municipality Stadium. The home team, Salam Zgharta, won the game 1–0 after a goal from Wehbe Douaihy at the 58th minute.

Reserve team

In the 2014–15 season, Salam Zgharta's administration bought a Second Division club called "Al Oummal Tripoli". The club was renamed Amal Al Salam Zgharta, and is used as a reserve team.

Players

Current squad

As of 22 September 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	Template:Fba/core	Youssed Mrad
2	DF	Template:Fba/core	Yehya Kahil
4	MF	REDIRECT Template:Country data Palestine	Ahmad Yassine
5	MF	Template:Fba/core	Amer Mahfoud (captain)
7	MF	Template:Fba/core	Mohammad Samrout
8	MF	Template:Fba/core	Ghazi Hussein
9	FW	Template:Fba/core	Haidar Awada
11	FW	Template:Fba/core	Jason Bayeh
12	DF	Template:Fba/core	Rawad Gitani
16	DF	Template:Fba/core	Patrick Mannah
17	MF	Template:Fba/core	Fouad Khawaja
19	FW	Template:Fba/core	Obulor Silas

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
22	DF	Template:Fba/core	Adel Khalil
25	DF	Template:Fba/core	Joe Khawaja
70	DF	Template:Fba/core	Emmanuel Obere
89	GK	Template:Fba/core	Joseph Bitar
—	FW	Template:Fba/core	Mohammad Chaaban
—		Template:Fba/core	Issa Nadi Bazzi
—	DF	Template:Fba/core	Alex El Rattel
—	DF	Template:Fba/core	Mohamad Korhani
—	FW	Template:Fba/core	Mohamad Al-Zahed
—		Template:Fba/core	Imad Al Azmeh
—	GK	Template:Fba/core	Elio Derjani
—	FW	Template:Fba/core	Elio Rostom
—	FW	Template:Fba/core	Anthony Azizi

Notable players

Players in international competitions

Competition	Player	National team
2019 AFC Asian Cup	Walid Ismail	{{ Template:Yesno	alias = Lebanon	flag alias = Flag of Lebanon.svg	flag alias-air force = Flag of the Lebanese Air Force.svg	link alias-air force = Lebanese Air Force	flag alias-army = Flag of the Lebanese Armed Forces (Front).svg	link alias-army = Lebanese Ground Forces	flag alias-navy = Drapeau de Forces Navales Libanaises.jpg	link alias-navy = Lebanese Navy	flag alias-naval = Naval Jack of Lebanon.gif	link alias-naval = Lebanese Navy	flag alias-1918 = Flag of Lebanon (1918-1920).svg	flag alias-1920 = Flag of Lebanon (1920-1943).svg	flag alias-1920a = Flag of the French Mandate of Syria (1920).svg	flag alias-1920b = Lebanese French flag.svg	flag alias-1943 = Flag of Lebanon (1943-1990).svg	size =	name =	variant =	altlink = national football team }}
	Mostafa Matar	{{ Template:Yesno	alias = Lebanon	flag alias = Flag of Lebanon.svg	flag alias-air force = Flag of the Lebanese Air Force.svg	link alias-air force = Lebanese Air Force	flag alias-army = Flag of the Lebanese Armed Forces (Front).svg	link alias-army = Lebanese Ground Forces	flag alias-navy = Drapeau de Forces Navales Libanaises.jpg	link alias-navy = Lebanese Navy	flag alias-naval = Naval Jack of Lebanon.gif	link alias-naval = Lebanese Navy	flag alias-1918 = Flag of Lebanon (1918-1920).svg	flag alias-1920 = Flag of Lebanon (1920-1943).svg	flag alias-1920a = Flag of the French Mandate of Syria (1920).svg	flag alias-1920b = Lebanese French flag.svg	flag alias-1943 = Flag of Lebanon (1943-1990).svg	size =	name =	variant =	altlink = national football team }}

Presidential history

Name	Nationality	Years
Youssef Zaidan	Template:Flagicon	1971
Sessine Ghazele	Template:Flagicon
Kabalan Yammine	Template:Flagicon	1992–2006
Estephan Frangieh	Template:Flagicon	2006–present

Managerial history

Name	Nationality	Years
Antoine "Al Shakra" Fenianos	Template:Flagicon	1971–????
Thaer Ahmad	Template:Flagicon	1996
Hussein Afeish	Template:Flagicon	2005
Assaf Khalife	Template:Flagicon	2005–????
Ghassan KhawajaTemplate:Efn	Template:Flagicon	2009
Assaf Khalife	Template:Flagicon	2012–2013
Peter Meindertsma	Template:Flagicon	2013–2015
Louai Abou Karam	Template:Flagicon	2015
Anas Makhlouf	Template:Flagicon	2015–2016
Tarek Jaraya	Template:Flagicon	2016–2017
Maher Sdiri	Template:Flagicon	2017–2018
Tarek Thabet	Template:Flagicon	2018
Ghassan Khawaja	Template:Flagicon	2018–2019
Anis BoujelbanTemplate:Efn	Template:Flagicon	2019
Nouhad Souccar	Template:Flagicon	2019
Ahmad Kadhem	Template:Flagicon	2019
Ghassan Khawaja	Template:Flagicon	2020–2021
Vladimir Vujović	Template:Flagicon	2021–2022
Kazem El Khansa	Template:Flagicon	2022
Andrew Oakley	Template:Flagicon	2022
Ahmed Hafez	Template:Flagicon	2022
Ricardo Cerqueira	Template:Flagicon	2023–present

Honours

• Lebanese FA Cup
  • Winners (1): 2013–14
• Lebanese Second Division
  • Winners (6): 1933–34,Template:Efn 1936–37,Template:Efn 1997–98, 2004–05, 2007–08, 2012–13 (group A)
• Lebanese Federation Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 1999
• Lebanese Super Cup
  • Runners-up (1): 2014
• Lebanese Challenge Cup (defunct)
  • Runners-up (2): 2016, 2019

Performance in AFC competitions

• AFC Cup: 1 appearance

2015: Group stage

See also

• List of football clubs in Lebanon

External links

• Salam Zgharta FC at the AFC
• Salam Zgharta FC at FA Lebanon