The Sultan of Selangor’s Cup celebrates friendship despite the competitive nature between football rivals, Selangor and Singapore.
In its posting on Facebook, the Selangor Royal Office wrote that the tournament was also about tradition, history, friendship, and sporting goodwill. The Selangor Royal Office is the official channel of the Selangor royal household.
“Those who know history will understand and celebrate the Sultan of Selangor’s Cup as a prestigious event that ignites the spirit of friendship in sports,” said the Royal Selangor Office.
“Aside from nostalgia, it is one of the events that local football fans who miss the glory days of Malaysian football, look forward to.”
The posting also called for an end to football violence.
“The Sultan of Selangor’s Cup is an example of combating sports violence, especially in the local football arena.”
The local football scene had been rocked by a series of attacks that left one fan, and three footballers, hurt.
At last year’s FA Cup final between Kuala Lumpur City and Johor Darul Ta’zim, a fan claimed he was attacked at the Sultan Ibrahim Stadium in Johor Bahru.
On May 2, Terengganu FC’s Akhyar Rashid was assaulted during a robbery in Kuala Terengganu. On May 5, Selangor star Faisal Halim suffered horrific burns to his head and arm in an acid attack at a shopping mall in Kota Damansara, Petaling Jaya.
The incident involving Faisal shocked the nation and grabbed headlines worldwide.
On May 7, JDT player Safiq Rahim had his car’s rear windscreen smashed by unknown assailants near the club’s training centre in Jalan Seri Gelam, Johor Bahru.
Police have yet to nab the culprits in all four cases.
Faisal, who is on the road to recovery, played for 45 minutes in the Sultan of Selangor’s Cup. Faisal could also feature in this weekend’s FA Cup final between Selangor and JDT at the National Stadium in Bukit Jalil, Kuala Lumpur.
Selangor and Singapore’s football teams have enjoyed decades-long rivalry in the domestic football scene. The teams met in 23 Malaysia Cup finals before Singapore withdrew from the league in 1994.
The last time the Sultan of Selangor Cup was held, was in 2019. It was postponed due to Covid-19. The 20th edition of the tournament, held on Aug 17, saw Selangor defeating Singapore 2-1.
The Aug 17 tournament also saw Selangor Veterans defeating their Singaporean counterparts 2-1.
