Just two weeks after parting ways with South African powerhouse Orlando Pirates, José Riveiro has been officially introduced as the new head coach of Egyptian powerhouse, Al Ahly.
The announcement, made on Thursday via the club’s social media channels, places the Spanish tactician at the helm of one of Africa’s most successful teams ahead of the highly anticipated FIFA Club World Cup, scheduled to run from June 14 to July 13.
Read: Coaches Share Insights Ahead of Pivotal Second Leg in CAF Champions League final
Riveiro’s first significant challenge as Al Ahly coach will come swiftly in the form of the expanded 2025 FIFA Club World Cup. The Cairo giants have been drawn into a formidable group alongside footballing titans such as Lionel Messi’s Inter Miami, Brazilian champions Palmeiras, and Portuguese stalwarts FC Porto.
To advance to the knockout rounds of this prestigious 32-team tournament, Al Ahly will need to secure a top-two finish in their group. Other African representatives competing in the tournament include South Africa’s Mamelodi Sundowns, Moroccan giants Wydad AC, and Tunisian powerhouse Espérance de Tunis.
Riveiro’s transition to Al Ahly marks a significant shift in his coaching environment. For three seasons at Orlando Pirates, he enjoyed a degree of patience and stability from his employers. Notably, the landscape at Al Ahly is famously different. Riveiro steps into a realm where the demands are astronomically high and immediate success is the expectation.
His Al Ahly predecessor, Marcel Koller, learned this lesson the hard way, after the club was eliminated from the CAF Champions League at the semi-final stage. This exit was particularly stinging as it came after Al Ahly had won back-to-back African titles, setting an incredibly high bar.
Al Ahly is not just Africa’s most successful club; their recent record underscores their dominance. They recently wrapped up a remarkable 45th Egyptian Premier League title and boast an incredible 12 CAF Champions League titles. Four of these continental triumphs have come since the 2019-20 season, a testament to the immense standards Riveiro is now inheriting.
Riveiro reportedly joins Al Ahly on a two-year contract, arriving with a relatively successful track record from his three-year stint in Soweto. His tenure with Orlando Pirates saw him achieve significant cup success, clinching three MTN8 titles and two Nedbank Cups. He also guided Pirates to the semi-finals of the CAF Champions League, where they narrowly lost 3-2 on aggregate to Pyramids FC.
When he arrived at Pirates in 2022, the Spanish mentor was relatively unknown to many South African fans, despite having previously been the head coach of Finland’s Inter Turku. Nevertheless, Riveiro departed Pirates having overseen 132 matches, accumulating an impressive 80 wins, 26 draws, and 26 defeats.
Riveiro officially left Orlando Pirates after a commanding 3-0 victory over Golden Arrows, a mere two weeks before the conclusion of the season.