Zanzibar,May 25, 2025 – Simba Sports Club's aspirations of clinching the CAF Confederation Cup title were dashed as they played out a 1-1 draw against Morocco's RS Berkane in the second leg of the final, held yesterday at the Amaan Stadium in Zanzibar. This result saw RS Berkane crowned champions with a 3-1 aggregate victory, having secured a crucial 2-0 win in the first leg on their home turf in Morocco.
Simba SC began the match with fervent determination, clearly aiming to overturn the first-leg deficit. The home crowd erupted in jubilation in the 17th minute when attacking midfielder Joshua Mutale found the back of the net after a precise pass from Elie Mpanzu. This early goal injected renewed hope into the Simba camp, putting Berkane under immediate pressure. The Moroccan side was forced to adjust their strategy, adopting a more defensive stance and relying on counter-attacks and set pieces.
However, circumstances took a challenging turn for the "Wekundu wa Msimbazi" (The Reds of Msimbazi) in the 50th minute, when their crucial defensive midfielder, Yusuf Kagoma, was shown a second yellow card, reducing Simba to ten men. Despite being a man down, Simba continued to fight valiantly, even scoring a second goal in the 73rd minute through Steven Mukwala. Unfortunately, this goal was disallowed by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) for an offside infringement, effectively extinguishing the last glimmer of hope for Simba's fans.
As the match drew to a close, RS Berkane capitalized on their numerical advantage, finding an equalizer in the 90+3 minute through their Malian midfielder, Soumaila Sidibe. This late goal sealed Simba SC's fate, bringing their historic cup journey to an end, leaving them as the tournament's runners-up.
RS Berkane proudly lifted the Confederation Cup trophy, securing a prize money of approximately $2 million, while Simba SC, as the valiant finalists, received $1 million.