A fan at the Saudi Super Cup final lashed an Al Ittihad player with a whip during a confrontation moments after the match on Thursday.
The incident occurred following Al Ittihad’s 4-1 loss to Al Hilal in the final played at Abu Dhabi’s Mohammed Bin Zayed Stadium.
A video circulating on social media shows striker Abderrazak Hamdallah throwing water from a bottle at the fan, who responds by pulling out a long whip and lashing at the Moroccan twice — appearing to hit the player’s back the second time.
The 33-year-old Hamdallah, who had missed a penalty but later scored his team’s only goal during the game, did not appear to be injured.
As Hamdallah’s teammates stepped in, the fan was guided away by another spectator and a security official. In the video, the fan did not appear to be detained. A young fan in a wheelchair was nearly caught in the middle of the altercation.
In 2023, the Super Cup was expanded from a single game between the league champions and King’s Cup winners to include the runners-up from both competitions.
The Super Cup trophy is the first of the season for the Riyadh side but is unlikely to be the last as the team is also 12 points clear of Al Nassr at the top of the Saudi Pro League with just seven games remaining.
Al Hilal, also in the semi-finals of the Asian Champions League and the Saudi King’s Cup, have extended their world record winning streak for top-tier teams to 34 consecutive games in all competitions.
