Maziya Sports and Recreation clinched a narrow victory against Buru Sports Club in their opening match of the President’s Cup 2026. The match, graced by the Minister of Sports, Abdulla Rafiu, concluded with a 1-0 win for Maziya. In addition to these two teams, Victory Sports Club is also included in Group A of the tournament.
The defending champions, Maziya, dominated the first half of the match held at the National Football Stadium. Throughout the game, clear scoring opportunities remained scarce for both sides.
Maziya’s decisive goal came in the 15th minute, when Azerbaijani defender Nazim Mamadzada headed home a well-placed corner delivered by Ahmed Aiham. In the 27th minute, Buru’s Mohamed Naaim attempted a long-range strike from outside the area, but the ball drifted wide of the post.
Four minutes into the second half, Maziya’s Spanish forward, Sergio Mendy, unleashed a shot from outside the box which was initially blocked by the goalkeeper; however, Mendy’s follow-up attempt failed to find the target. Later in the half, Maziya’s Mohamed Ilaan Imran capitalized on a defensive error by Buru to break into the penalty area, but his resulting shot went wide.
Maziya is scheduled to face Victory Sports Club in their next group stage match this coming Monday.
