Ali Thameem
New Radiant secured the FA Cup title with a 3–0 win over TC Sports in the FA Cup final, winning the first trophy in eight years.
The final was skewed towards them early on, as Ali Fasir gave New Radiant the lead; a panenka from the penalty spot. Fasir himself had won the penalty after being fouled inside the area by TC defender Hassan Enaaz.
The second goal arrived in the 40th minute through Nigerian forward Alhaji Gero. A loose sequence inside the TC half, initiated by a pass from Brazilian midfielder Guilherme Silva, broke kindly for Gero, who struck from outside the area, the effort taking a touch on its way in.
Gero added his second in the 82nd minute. Silva again played a central role, delivering into the area where Gero met it with a header to complete the scoring.
It was a night that felt like a Deja vu, because New Radiant had last lifted the same trophy by defeating TC Sports in the final of 2017.
The last time New Radiant won any trophy was in the Malé League back in 2018. That same year, New Radiant were suspended by the Football Association of Maldives. It took four years to halt the suspension, and two more seasons in the second division before a pathway opened back into the top tier, promotion granted after Super United Sports vacated their first division place.
Across all competitions, New Radiant are now the first to reach 50 trophies.
Arguably the most decorated club in Maldivian football, New Radiant now has thirteen trophies in both the FA Cup and the President’s Cup. And with six Dhivehi League titles, four Cup Winners’ Cups, four Veterans Cups, three Malé League titles, three POMIS Cups, two women’s football tournament titles, and two Charity Shields, the clubs leaves little room to doubt their dominance over the past 47 years.
For a club that spent much of the past eight years without football, New Radiant’s first season concludes with a reminder of why they are regarded as the greatest football club in Maldives.
