In 1916, the idea of establishing a football league in the Sultanate of Egypt was proposed. The league would include Egyptian teams and teams from the allies' military clubs, including the British. The competition was named after SultanHussein Kamel.
Zamalek team, winners of the first Sultan Hussein Cup in 1921, becoming the first Egyptian team to ever win a tournament
Zamalek was the only Egyptian club to participate in the championship as a sign of resistance to the British and a way to display the Egyptian presence in the sport. Zamalek reached the final of the 1917 edition and eventually won the cup in 1920–21. This encouraged other Egyptian clubs to participate including Al Ahly which initially refused to take part, but in 1918, they decided to take part.[4]
