Jeddah's Ittihad Club’s brilliant performance this year was rewarded when the Asian Football Federation (AFC) named it the best AFC club of the year. Ittihad’s Hamad Al-Muntashiri was also named best player of the year. The defender played an important role in securing the AFC’s championship title in Jeddah against Al-Ain of the UAE.
Ittihad defeated Al-Ain 5-3 on aggregate. The first leg match in UAE ended 1-1 on Oct. 26. Ittihad delayed their celebration of Eid to the third day after Ittihad secured the title in a strong match against Al-Ain at Prince Abdullah Al-Faisal Stadium in Jeddah. Ittihad automatically qualified to the FIFA World Club Championship competition, which took place in Japan. Ittihad came fourth in the competition after showing an excellent performance following a victory in the opening match against Ahli of Egypt 1-0. Despite losing to Sao Paulo 3-2, Ittihad has earned international recognition as a formidable team.
