Mayele Hat-trick Fires Pyramids to First FIFA Title and a Place in December’s Challenger Cup
African champions Pyramids FC of Egypt claimed their first trophy in a FIFA competition with a statement 3-1 victory over Saudi Arabia’s Al Ahli at a packed King Abdullah Sports City in Jeddah on Tuesday night.
On a night that showcased African club football at its slick, powerful best, Fiston Mayele’s treble delivered the FIFA African-Asian-Pacific Cup and kept the Egyptian champions on course in the FIFA Intercontinental Cup 2025 pathway.
The Cairo club, winners of last season’s TotalEnergies CAF Champions League, reached this stage by dispatching Auckland City 3-0 in Cairo on 14 September.
Al Ahli, taking part in a FIFA club event for the first time after winning the 2024/25 AFC Champions League title, supplied formidable opposition and a full house – but Pyramids controlled the key moments.
After a lively opening in which the visitors fashioned the clearer chances, Mayele broke through on 21 minutes, drilling low beyond Édouard Mendy.
He might have doubled the lead before the interval but hit the side-netting from close range.
The hosts levelled on the stroke of half-time when Ivan Toney converted from the spot, shifting the mood in Jeddah.
Krunoslav Jurčić’s side reset after the break and reasserted their grip.
Mayele restored the advantage on 71 minutes with a sharp finish and, four minutes later, completed his hat-trick to silence the home support and secure the cup for the African champions.
The DR Congo forward’s ruthless edge proved the difference in a contest that ebbed and flowed for an hour before Pyramids’ quality told.
The triumph moves Pyramids into the FIFA Challenger Cup on Saturday, 13 December.
There they will face the winners of the FIFA Derby of the Americas, scheduled for Wednesday, 10 December, between Concacaf Champions Cup holders Cruz Azul and the CONMEBOL Libertadores champions (to be decided on 29 November).
Whoever emerges from the Challenger Cup will meet UEFA Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain in the Intercontinental Cup final on Wednesday, 17 December, with the venue for both December fixtures to be confirmed.
For Pyramids—and for African club football—this was a landmark night: a continental champion going away from home, lifting a FIFA trophy, and keeping alive a shot at the global crown.
