MC Alger

Mouloudia Club d'Alger (), referred to as MC Alger or MCA for short, is an Algerian football club based in Algiers. The club was founded in 1921 and its colours are red, green and white. Their home stadium, Ali La Pointe Stadium, has a capacity of 40,000 spectators. The club is currently playing in the Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1.

Founded in 1921 as Mouloudia Club Algérois and Mouloudia Chaâbia d’Alger, the club was known as Mouloudia Pétroliers d'Alger from 1977 to 1986 and changed its name to Mouloudia Club d'Alger in 1986. The club colours are red and green.

MC Alger were the first Algerian club to win a continental competition, winning the 1976 African Cup of Champions Clubs. They are one of the most successful Algerian clubs having won the domestic league 8 times, and the domestic cup 8 times, tied with USM Alger, CR Belouizdad and ES Sétif.

As of the 2023–24 season, MC Alger was the Algerian football club with the highest market value. The market value was €9.68 million.

History

Birth of Mouloudia, the dean of Algerian clubs

In 1921, Aouf Ahmed, a member of a wealthy family from the Casbah and a former student at the Sarrouy school, witnessed a scene that made him want to create a football club. On the Place du Gouvernement, now Place des Martyrs5, children were playing football with a ball made from paper. French soldiers were watching them, and a sergeant declared: "Here is the Parc des Princes of the Arabs!" This statement annoyed him and prompted him to talk about his project to his friends the next day. The meeting that gave birth to the club took place in the back room of the café on rue Bénachère (called Souikia). Several names were proposed: Éclair sportif d’Alger, Croissant club d’Alger, Étoile sportive d'Alger, Jeunesse sportive d'Alger, until the name chosen Mouloudia Club Algérois. The colors (green and red) were chosen for these reasons: green represents the hope of the Algerian people, it is also the symbolic color of Islam. Red symbolizes love of the nation and sacrifice, it is also one of the favorite colors of the prophet Mohammed.

Encouraged by his friends, Ahmed Aouf organized the club statutes and regulations of the association, staff, preparation of resources (materials and finances), choice of acronym, problems of supervision, acquisition of a playing field and a sports club. Aouf sent a request to the prefecture to obtain approval for the founding of the club. The response was negative, Aouf Ahmed being then twenty-six years old. He therefore wrote the name of Abdelmalek, his aunt's husband, so that his project would be accepted. Abdelrrahmane Aouf was summoned twice by the prefecture to examine the file concerning the creation of the Muslim club. During the interviews, Aouf convinced the municipality of the legitimacy of his project. Thus, he said that the club would aim to train young people for military service and explained: "green, paradise, red hell for others seeking training". The colonial authorities sent a note to the headquarters specifying that the club's premises should be used only for sporting purposes (in order to prohibit political gatherings)6. On August 31, 1921 (26 Dhou Al-Hijja 1339) the Mouloudia Club Algérois was created. Its headquarters are located at the American refreshment bar, Place Mahon, in Algiers.

The beginnings

In 1976, MC Alger qualified for the African Cup of Champions Clubs for the first time in its history after winning the 1974–75 Algerian Championnat National. They reached the final after beating Al-Ahly Benghazi of Libya, Al Ahly of Egypt, Luo Union of Kenya and Enugu Rangers of Nigeria, respectively. In the final, they met Guinean club Hafia Conakry, who had won the last edition of the competition. In the first leg in Conakry, MC Alger lost 3–0 and faced the difficult task of having to score three goals in the return leg. However, in the return leg, they managed to score the three goals with a brace from Omar Betrouni and a goal from Zoubir Bachi. They went on to win the penalty shootout 4–1 to win their first African title and also become the first Algerian club to win a continental competition.

Crest

File:MC Alger (logo).png, Former logo
File:Logo MCA 1921.png, Present logo

Kit manufacturers

Honours

Domestic competitions

* Algerian League 1
** Champions (8): 1971–72, 1974–75, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1998–99, 2009–10, 2023–24
** ''Runners-up (5)'': 1962–63, 1969–70, 1988–89, 2016–17, 2019–20
* Algerian Cup
** Winners (8): 1970–71, 1972–73, 1975–76, 1982–83, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2013–14, 2015–16
** ''Runners-up (2)'': 2012–13, 2023–24
* Algerian Super Cup
** Winners (4) (record): 2006, 2007, 2014, 2025
** ''Runner-up (1)'': 2016
* Algerian League Cup
** Winners (1): 1998

International competitions

* CAF Champions League
** Winners (1): 1976

Regional competitions

* Maghreb Cup Winners Cup
** Winners (2): 1971, 1974
* North African Cup of Champions
** ''Runners-up (1)'': 2010
* Maghreb Champions Cup
** ''Runners-up (1)'': 1975

Performance in CAF competitions

* African Cup of Champions Clubs / CAF Champions League: 9 appearances

::1976 – Champion
::1977 – Quarter-finals
::1979 – Second Round
::1980 – Quarter-finals

::2000 – First Round
::2011 – Group stage
::2018 – Group stage
::2021 – Quarter – finals
::2025 – Quarter-finals

* CAF Confederation Cup: 4 appearances
::2007 – First Round
::2008 – First Round
::2015 – First Round
::2017 – Quarter-finals

* CAF Cup Winners' Cup: 1 appearance
::1984 – Second Round

Players

Algerian teams are limited to three foreign players. The squad list includes only the principal nationality of each player;

Current squad

'

On loan

Reserve squad

Personnel

Current technical staff

Notable players

Below are the notable former players who have represented MC Alger in league and international competition since the club's foundation in 1921. To appear in the section below, a player must have played in at least 100 official matches for the club or represented the national team for which the player is eligible during his stint with MC Alger or following his departure.

''For a complete list of MC Alger players, see :MC Alger players''

Managers

* Mahmoud Hamid Bacha, Mustapha Biskri (1998)
* Abdelhamid Kermali, Mustapha Biski (1983–89), (1998–1999)
* Michel Renquin (2000–2001)
* Bachir Mechri, Ali Bencheikh, Bachta (2001–2002)
* Noureddine Saâdi (2002– Dec 4, 2003)
* Hervé Revelli (Jan 1, 2004 – May 1, 2004)
* Jean-Paul Rabier (2004–05)
* Robert Nouzaret (July 1, 2005 – Dec 24, 2005)
* Noureddine Saâdi (Dec 2005 – March 2006)
* François Bracci (March 2006 – Oct 06)
* Hacène Matallah (Oct 2006 – Nov 06)
* Enrico Fabbro (Nov 2006 – Nov 07)
* Jean Thissen (Nov 2007 – Jan 08)
* Enrico Fabbro (Jan 2008 – Feb 08)
* Mohamed Mekhazni (Feb 2008 – March 8)
* Ameur Djamil (March 27, 2008 – Sept 21, 2008)
* Alain Michel (Sept 21, 2008 – Dec 09)
* François Bracci (Dec 2009–10)
* Alain Michel (June 2010 – March 15, 2011)
* Noureddine Zekri (March 11, 2011 – July 19, 2011)
* Abdelhak Menguellati (June 2011 – Aug 11)
* Abdelhak Benchikha (Sept 1, 2011 – Oct 5, 2011)
* François Bracci (Oct 23, 2011 – Feb 11, 2012)
* Kamel Bouhellal (Feb 10, 2012 – May 5, 2012)
* Abdelkrim Bira (May 4, 2012 – June 30, 2012)
* Patrick Liewig (July 1, 2012 – Aug 20, 2012)
* Jean-Paul Rabier (Aug 27, 2012 – Sept 23, 2012)
* Djamel Menad (Sept 24, 2012 – May 9, 2013)
* Farid Zemiti ''(interim)'' (May 10, 2013 – June 30, 2013)
* Alain Geiger (July 1, 2013 – Nov 10, 2013)
* Fouad Bouali (Nov 18, 2013–14)
* Artur Jorge (2014 – October 8, 2015)
* Meziane Ighil (October 13, 2015– February 2016)
* (Mars, 2016 – May 27, 2016)
* Djamel Menad (June, 2016– October, 2016)
* Kamel Mouassa (October, 2016– July, 2017)
* Bernard Casoni (August, 2017– August, 2018)
* Rafik Saifi (September 15, 2018– October 23, 2018)
* Adel Amrouche (October, 2018– March 12, 2019)
* Bernard Casoni (July, 2019– December 8, 2019)
* Mohamed Mekhazni (December 8, 2019– February 5, 2020)
* Nabil Neghiz (February 5, 2020 – February 4, 2021)
* Abdelkader Amrani (February 7, 2021 – April 12, 2021)
* Nabil Neghiz (April 28, 2021 –August 10, 2021)
* Khaled Ben Yahia (September 1, 2021 –June 10, 2022)
* Faruk Hadžibegić (July 16, 2022 –September 10, 2022)
* Faouzi Benzarti (September 25, 2022 –February, 2023)
* Patrice Beaumelle (March 3, 2023 –Dec 16, 2024)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Alger, MC

Football clubs in Algeria
Association football clubs established in 1921
Algerian Ligue Professionnelle 1 clubs
1921 establishments in Algeria
CAF Champions League–winning clubs