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Nejmeh Sporting Club (Arabic: نادي النجمة الرياضي, lit. 'The Star Sporting Club') is a football club based in Manara, a neighbourhood in Ras Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon, that competes in the Lebanese Premier League.
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| Full name | Nejmeh Sporting Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | القلعة النبيذية (The Burgundy Castle)[1] | |
| Short name | Nejmeh | |
| Founded | 10 March 1945 | |
| Ground | Rafic Hariri Stadium[a] | |
| Capacity | 5,000 | |
| Chairman | Mazen Al Zaani | |
| Manager | Abbas Atwi | |
| League | Lebanese Premier League | |
| 2023–24 | Lebanese Premier League, 1st of 12 (champions) | |
| Website | nejmehsc | |
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The club was established in Beirut in 1945, and received its license in 1947. Nejmeh have won nine Lebanese Premier League titles, eight Lebanese FA Cups, 12 Lebanese Elite Cups, and seven Lebanese Super Cups. In Asia, Nejmeh were runners-up in the 2005 AFC Cup, where they lost to Al-Faisaly of Jordan.
Nejmeh is primarily supported by the Sunni Muslim community with a minority of Shiites and Druzes,[2] and shares a historic rivalry with fellow Beirut-based club Ansar, known as the Beirut derby. The club's board is affiliated with the Future Movement political party and the Hariri family.[3][4]
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Nejmeh was founded in 1945 by the Druze and Sunni communities from Ras Beirut, Beirut, Lebanon,[5] as an association football club, with Anis Radwan as their first president.[6] This committee applied for a license at the Lebanese Government on 4 March 1947,[7] which was issued on 28 April.[6] The choice of club's name is said to have came on 11 October 1945, when a meeting was held at Radwan's house at night to discuss the affairs of the team.[6] Looking at the sky's stars, Radwan decided to call the team Nejmeh (The Star).[6] The five-pointed star is the Druze's religious symbol.[5]
On 25 July 1950, Nejmeh won the Lebanese Second Division, but were only officially promoted in 1951,[7] during which Papken Poyajian was appointed president of the club. They first competed in the Lebanese Premier League during the 1953–54 season.[7] Nejmeh finished runners-up in the Lebanese FA Cup twice: in 1951 and 1964, losing in the finals to Shabiba Mazraa and Safa respectively.[8]
Nejmeh lifted their first trophy, the Lebanese FA Cup, on 31 October 1971, when they won 3–1 against Safa.[9] Nejmeh's goals were scored by Jamal Al Khatib, Hassan Chatila, and Mahmoud Chatila.[9] During the 1970s, Brazilian international players Pelé[10][11][12][13] and Bebeto[14][15][16] played matches with Nejmeh as honorary guests.
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Ever since the club's foundation, the traditional and primary color of Nejmeh has been burgundy red.[17] The club's badge was composed of a star in the center, in reference to the club's name which, in Arabic, means "Star".[6] The two cedars on the side of the logo recalled Lebanon's national symbol.
In 2019 the logo underwent various changes: the star changed from white to gold, the cedars from green to burgundy and the text from burgundy to black. Other minor changes have also been made such as the enlargement of the width of the white border, and the shift of the text "BEIRUT 1945", which moved from the center of the star to underneath it.[18]
In 2023 the logo was drastically changed, with a more simplistic style being adopted. It became a pictogram of a burgundy "N" (for Nejmeh) and a "C" (for Club) fused together, with a gold star in the center. The text "1945" above and "BEIRUT" below are written in burgundy.[19]
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The Rafic Hariri Stadium is located in Manara area of Beirut, Lebanon.[20] The stadium consists of a football field, and spaces that accommodate around 5,000 spectators, together with a VIP seats area that accommodates around 100 guests, a cafeteria, and a gymnasium.[21]
The old club stadium first consisted of a sand training field over the land number 704 in Ras Beirut area with no facilities or fences.[21] The stadium went through a rehabilitation process, with improvements including implanting the field with grass, increasing the seats spaces to allow more spectators, and enhancing the stadium facilities, walls, and fences. The first phase of the process started in June 2003 and was completed in late March 2004.[21]
On 21 February 2005, the stadium was named "The Martyr Rafic Hariri Stadium" in honour of the late Prime Minister.[21]
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Founded on 9 February 2018,[22] Nejmeh's "Ultras Supernova" was the first ultras group to be introduced in Lebanon.[23][24][25] The name "Supernova" is a reference to the etymology of Nejmeh which, in Arabic, means "Star".
Prior to the Arab Club Champions Cup game against Al-Ahly of Egypt, played on 13 August 2018, seven "Ultras Supernova" fans were arrested by the Egyptian national security because of the negative connotations the word "Ultras" has in Egypt.[26] The fans were returned to Lebanon by request of the Lebanese Ambassador to Cairo.[27]
During the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Nejmeh ultras were employed by the Qatari government to act as Qatar national team fans during their games. The 1,500 "adopted" ultras wore maroon t-shirts with "Qatar" stamped on front, sang the Qatari national anthem and beat drums while singing chants.[28]
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The Beirut derby with Ansar has historically been the most anticipated game in Lebanon: both located in Beirut, Nejmeh and Ansar have shared the majority of titles. While Nejmeh has been more successful in Asia, Ansar holds the most league titles and FA Cups.[17]
In recent years another fierce rivalry has developed, between Nejmeh and Ahed. Also based in Beirut, Ahed have won the majority of league titles since the 2014–15 season. Tensions between the two teams have also forced the federation to change venues multiple times.[29] Most noticeably, in the 2016–17 season, Nejmeh refused to play against Ahed in the league title decider and were sanctioned six points by the federation.[30]
Another rivalry that has developed in recent years is with Salam Zgharta. Since the 2016–17 season, Salam Zgharta and Nejmeh have played various intense games between each other, with some escalating in offensive chants.[31]
Other important matches are with Safa and Racing, both located in the same city as Nejmeh.
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Current squad
- As of 11 September 2024[32]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Notable players
| Competition | Player | National team |
|---|---|---|
| 2000 AFC Asian Cup | Abbas Chahrour |  Lebanon |
| Wahid El Fattal | Lebanon | |
| Mohamed Halawi | Lebanon | |
| Moussa Hojeij | Lebanon | |
| 2007 AFC Asian Cup | Bassim Abbas |  Iraq |
| 2012 Africa Cup of Nations | Osama Chtiba |  Libya |
| 2017 Africa Cup of Nations | Hassan Wasswa |  Uganda |
| 2019 AFC Asian Cup | Kassem El Zein | Lebanon |
| Ali Hamam | Lebanon | |
| Hassan Maatouk | Lebanon | |
| Nader Matar | Lebanon | |
| 2023 AFC Asian Cup | Ali Sabeh | Lebanon |
| Maher Sabra | Lebanon | |
| Kassem El Zein | Lebanon |
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Domestic
League
- Lebanese Premier League
- Lebanese Second Division
- Winners (1): 1950–51[33]
Cup
Continental
- AFC Cup
- Runners-up (1): 2005
- Arab Club Champions Cup
- Runners-up (1): 1981–82
Awards
- Best Team in Asia
- Winners (1): March 2000[34]
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In 1982, Nejmeh reached the Arab Club Champions Cup final but lost to Iraqi club Al-Shorta.[35] In 2005, Nejmeh reached the final of the AFC Cup and lost to Al-Faisaly of Jordan: this was the first time a Lebanese football team had reached the final of any Asian competition.[17]
- AFC Champions League: 2 appearances
- AFC Cup: 11 appearances
- AFC Challenge League: 1 appearance
- 2024–25: TBD
- Asian Cup Winners' Cup: 3 appearances
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