Al Hilal's African odyssey, Brazil's first indigenous pro club & a 42-second Dutch replay

About this episode

The episode explores Al Hilal Omdurman's remarkable achievements across three countries and discusses the emergence of Brazil's first indigenous pro club.

How has an exiled football club won league titles in three countries in the space of 12 months? In this episode, we tell the extraordinary story of Sudan’s Al Hilal Omdurman and their unprecedented African odyssey. After escaping conflict at home, they first conquered Mauritania’s Super D1 in May 2025, before winning a short championship in their native Sudan last summer and the Rwandan Premier League this month. But why have they been playing in other countries? Will their tour of the continent continue next season? And which other clubs have become champions of another nation? Plus, the first indigenous pro club in Brazil get off to a winning start and a 42-second Dutch replay goes comically wrong. ‘Around The World In 80 Clubs’: www.amazon.co.uk/Around-World-80-Clubs-Wonderful/dp/1399637886 Ali Howorth’s Substack newsletter: www.alasdairhoworth.substack.com Chapters: 00:00 – Intro 02:20 – The move to Mauritania 05:55 – The return home to Sudan 07:34 – The relocation to Rwanda 12:55 – Al Hilal’s next destination 14:45 – Champions in foreign countries 19:06 – Brazil’s first indigenous pro club 22:50 – A 42-second Dutch replay

People in this episode

Hosts: Lee Wingate, Paul Watson

Topics covered

• Al Hilal Omdurman's journey
• African football
• indigenous football clubs
• international championships
• football conflict
• comedic sports moments

Keywords

• Al Hilal Omdurman
• African odyssey
• football championships
• indigenous pro club
• Mauritania
• Sudan
• Rwanda
• comedic replay

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Al Hilal Omdurman, Brazil

Books & works: Around The World In 80 Clubs

Places: Sudan, Mauritania, Rwanda

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