Since Mahmoud El Khatib took over as chairman of Al Ahly in late 2017, the club has been led by 13 local and foreign coaches from various European, Latin American, and African football schools.

El Khatib assumed responsibility while the team was coached by Hossam El Badry, who left at the end of the 2017-2018 season. His assistant, Ahmed Ayoub, served as interim coach for only one match.

Al Ahly then signed French coach Patrice Carteron in summer 2018, who left after a few months before the end of the year following losses to Tunisian Esperance in the CAF Champions League final and to UAE’s Al Wasl in the Arab Club Championship.

The club temporarily assigned the role to Mohamed Youssef, the current sporting director, until signing Uruguayan coach Martin Lasarte in early 2019.

Despite winning the league title at the end of the 2018-2019 season, Lasarte was dismissed weeks later after an Egypt Cup exit against Pyramids in the round of 16.

Mohamed Youssef again took over as interim coach until the Swiss René Weiler was signed. Weiler stayed only one season and left in summer 2020 due to difficulty adapting to life outside his country amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

After Weiler’s departure, Al Ahly made a historic move by signing South African coach Pitso Mosimane, the first coach from Africa to work inside Al Ahly’s walls.

Mosimane led Al Ahly to notable achievements including winning the CAF Champions League twice in 2020 and 2021 and earning two bronze medals at the FIFA Club World Cup. However, he left after just over two years following the loss to Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca in the 2022 CAF Champions League final.

After Mosimane’s departure, his assistant Sami Gomaa took over as interim coach for several matches in the 2021-2022 season. Then Portuguese coach Ricardo Soares was signed but was dismissed after only two months following a loss to Zamalek in the Egypt Cup final.

Al Ahly experienced its longest period of coaching stability under chairman El Khatib with Swiss coach Marcel Koller, who took charge in early September 2022 and stayed for nearly three seasons, winning all local titles plus the CAF Champions League in 2023 and 2024.

Koller’s tenure ended with the team’s exit before the CAF Champions League semifinals against Sundowns. Interim coach Emad El Nahhas took over “for the first time” and completed the 2024-2025 season, leading the team to the league title.

El Nahhas left, and Spanish coach Jose Ribeiro took over, leading Al Ahly at the FIFA Club World Cup, where the team exited in the first round after two draws against Inter Miami and Porto, and a loss to Palmeiras.

Ribeiro left quickly due to poor league results, with only one win in the first four rounds against Pharco, two draws against Modern Sport and Ghazl El Mahalla, and a loss to Pyramids, which led to his dismissal.

Emad El Nahhas returned to correct Al Ahly’s course, leading the team to four league wins, including a 2-1 victory over Zamalek in the 131st Cairo Derby, before handing over to Danish coach Jess Thorup, who signed a two-and-a-half-year contract until summer 2027.