Akram Afif
Footballer, Qatar and Al-Sadd
13 October, 2026
One of the most accomplished Qatari footballers of his generation, Akram Afif has twice been crowned AFC Player of the Year, in 2019 and 2023, becoming the first Qatari to win the honour twice.
An Aspire Academy graduate who had early spells with clubs in Spain and Belgium, the Al Sadd forward has been central to Qatar’s back-to-back AFC Asian Cup triumphs in 2019 and 2023.
At the 2023 tournament, staged in Qatar in early 2024, he was named Most Valuable Player and won the Golden Boot with eight goals, including a hat-trick of penalties in the final against Jordan, the first hat-trick in an AFC Asian Cup final.
At club level, Afif finished as the Qatar Stars League’s top scorer in 2023/24 with 26 goals and helped Al Sadd secure a domestic double.
His performances for club and country have made him one of the defining figures of Qatar’s modern football era, while his international experience and ability to deliver in major matches have made him a reference point for the country’s next generation of players.
