Herat’s pride and joy, Attack Energy FC, clinched the sought-after Afghanistan Champions League trophy in Kabul on Wednesday for the second season in a row after putting on a spectacular show over the last month by winning all of their 11 matches.

In the last match of the season on Wednesday, Attack Energy FC kept up their winning streak when they beat Adalat Farah FC 2-0.

Ending with a whopping 41 goals in total, the Herat boys were clear winners.

But it wasn’t just their attack strategy that was on point, their defense was also a cut above the rest as they ensured none of their opponents scored a single goal against them.

Attack Energy’s win comes after an exhilarating month of top-class football and to top it all off, the team’s captain Faisal Hamidi was handed the trophy by football officials.

Lifting the trophy in the air he then ran towards his teammates and jumped for joy. The team joined in and cheers and whoops of joy abounded. Attack Energy’s hard work had certainly paid off.

This was the third season of ACL and once again it proved hugely popular among football fans across the country, who were able to tune in and watch all matches live and exclusively on Ariana Television.

Twelve teams participated in this year’s league, which started on April 20 and ran through to Wednesday, May 22.

Matches were played at the Afghanistan Football Federation Stadium in Kabul and the league was sponsored by Victor Energy Drink.

Together, the Afghanistan Football Federation, Victor Energy Drink and Ariana Television Network delivered a thrilling month of top class football. In total, 66 games were played over 33 days. Players were drawn from different regions around the country along with foreign players who came in from Iran, Pakistan and Nigeria.

The teams were:
Istiqlal Kabul FC
Khurasan Faryab FC
Sorkh Poshan Khafi
Abu Muslim Farah FC
Jawanan Wahedi FC
Khadim FC
Maiwand FC
Aino Mina FC
Mawj Sahil FC
Attack Energy FC
Adalat Farah FC
Sarsabz Yashlar FC

Aino Mina’s Ahmad Nabi Muqdaz was top scorer of the tournament. He was not however available to collect his award, which was handed over to the head of the Kandahar Football Federation Nasir Rahmani, in Muqdaz’s absence.

Hamid Amiri from Sarkh Poshan Khafi won best player of the tournament; Faisal Hamidi of Herat’s Attack Energy won the golden glove and the best goalie award with 11 clean sheets and an unbeaten season.

Mawj Sahil’s goal-oriented player Esmat Hadafmand won the young talent award and Ali Ahmad Yarzadeh, the successful head coach and the record holder of an unbeaten championship in the Afghanistan Champions League, won the award for the best head coach.

Speaking to Ariana News after the closing ceremony, Attack Energy’s Club Manager said he was thrilled at his team’s win. He also took the time to thank organizers and sponsors for having made the event possible.

“I really thank Ariana Television for broadcasting ACL matches. The broadcast by Ariana Television was brilliant. I congratulate the victory of Attack Energy for all fans across Afghanistan,” he said.

Attack Energy’s foreign player, Behnam Habibi, who is from Iran, also spoke to Ariana Television after their win. He said he was overjoyed.

“I am very happy. I cannot describe my feelings in words. I’m really thankful to Ariana Television for good coverage. The broadcasting by Ariana Television was outstanding. Everything was perfect.”

Fans also came out in support of Attack Energy’s win with social media buzzing with messages of congratulations.

One fan, Amanyar, said on Facebook: “Congratulations to the deserving team of Herat Energy Attack. They really proved that they deserve this championship.”

A Herat fan, Karim Sarwari also congratulated the team in a post on Facebook and said the trophy “returns to Herat”. He added that “it (the trophy) doesn’t want to leave Herat.”