Jamal Khamis Taha (; born 23 November 1966) is a football coach and former player. Born in Egypt, he played as a midfielder for the Lebanon national team.
Taha made 71 caps for Lebanon between 1993 and 2000, and was their captain at the 2000 Asian Cup.
Early life Jamal Taha was born in Cairo, Egypt, to an Egyptian father and a Lebanese mother; he obtained Lebanese citizenship through naturalization in 1992 via a presidential decree. Taha joined Ansar's youth team in 1977.
Club career Nicknamed "the Brown Gazelle" (), Taha began his senior career with Ansar in 1986, where he ended his career in 2002. He wore the number 6 on his jersey, and was the club's captain from 1997 onwards.
International career Taha was the national team's captain during the 2000 AFC Asian Cup in Lebanon.
Managerial career
Ansar Taha started out as Adnan Hamad's assistant manager at Ansar during the 2005–06 season; he helped his side win the domestic double (Lebanese Premier League and Lebanese FA Cup). The following season, in 2006–07, Taha was appointed the first manager of Ansar, winning Ansar's second consecutive domestic double. He remained head coach until the end of the 2007–08 season, where he lost the league title to Ahed by one point.
In July 2011, Taha was re-appointed manager of Ansar, staying there until the end of the 2012–13 season. He won the 2011–12 Lebanese FA Cup, and the 2012 Lebanese Super Cup.
Shabab Sahel and Tadamon Sour On 10 September 2013, he took charge of Shabab Sahel; he won the Lebanese Challenge Cup in 2014. After two seasons he returned to Ansar, managing them during the 2015–16 season, before resigning after the first league game of the following season in September 2016. In January 2017, Taha became manager of Tadamon Sour until June 2018.
Lebanon On 3 June 2019, he was appointed assistant manager of the Lebanon national team under Liviu Ciobotariu's tenure. After one year, on 17 June 2020, the Lebanese Football Association (LFA) decided not to extend Ciobotariu's contract, and appointed Taha as the national team's coach. He became the first Lebanese coach of the national team in almost 12 years, since the appointment of Emile Rustom in November 2008.
Under Taha, Lebanon underperformed in their last three fixtures of the second round of 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, struggling to overcome Sri Lanka 3–2, and losing against Turkmenistan and South Korea; Lebanon qualified Lebanon to the third round as fifth-best runner-up by virtue of other results going in their favour. Taha's tenure was not extended following the expiration of his one-year contract on 30 June 2021.
Lebanon U23 On 27 September 2021, Taha was announced as head coach of the Lebanon national under-23 team.
Return to Ansar On 26 June 2022, Taha returned as head coach of Ansar.
Return to Lebanon U23 In January 2025, Taha returned as head coach of the Lebanon national under-23 team.https://elsport.com/news/show/762395/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%AA%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A-%D9%84%D9%83%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%85-%D8%AC%D9%85%D8%A7%D9%84-%D9%85%D8%AF%D8%B1%D8%A8%D8%A7-%D9%84%D9%84%D9%85%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%AE%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3 He led the team to their first AFC U-23 Asian Cup qualification for the 2026 tournament, where Lebanon lost the first two games against Uzbekistan (3–2) and South Korea (4–2), and won against Iran (1–0), Lebanon's first victory in the AFC U-23 Asian Cup.https://www.the-lfa.com.lb/news/AFCU23_LBNxIRN.php
Return to Tadamon Sour On 22 July 2025, Taha was re-appointed head coach of Tadamon Sour.
Career statistics International + Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsLebanon199381199400199511199673199791199874199920200091Total4311
Scores and results list Lebanon's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Taha goal. +List of international goals scored by Jamal Taha No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 17 May 1993Bourj Hammoud Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon2–02–21994 FIFA World Cup qualification 26 December 1995Bourj Hammoud Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon1–12–1Friendly 312 May 1996Bourj Hammoud Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon2–13–11996 AFC Asian Cup qualification 45 December 1996Beirut Municipal Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon3–24–2Friendly 58 December 1996Beirut Municipal Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon2–13–2Friendly 62 February 1997Bourj Hammoud Stadium, Beirut, Lebanon1–01–0Friendly 719 October 1998Al Nahyan Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates1–01–11998 Friendship Tournament 830 November 1998Surat Thani Provincial Stadium, Surat Thani, Thailand1–21–41998 Asian Games 94 December 1998Surat Thani Provincial Stadium, Surat Thani, Thailand1–05–11998 Asian Games 104–1 1113 May 2000Limassol, Cyprus–1–1Friendly
Managerial
+ Managerial record by club and tenureTeamFromToRecordAnsar December 2006 July 2008 Ansar July 2011 June 2013 Shabab Sahel September 2013 June 2015 Ansar July 2015 September 2016 Tadamon Sour January 2017 June 2018 Lebanon June 2020 June 2021 Total
Honours
Player Ansar Lebanese Premier League: 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98, 1998–99 Lebanese FA Cup: 1987–88, 1989–90, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1998–99, 2001–02 Lebanese Elite Cup: 1997, 2000 Lebanese Federation Cup: 1999, 2000 Lebanese Super Cup: 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999
Individual Lebanese Premier League Team of the Season: 1996–97, 1998–99
Manager Ansar Lebanese Premier League: 2006–07 Lebanese FA Cup: 2006–07, 2011–12 Lebanese Super Cup: 2012
Shabab Sahel Lebanese Challenge Cup: 2014
See also List of Lebanon international footballers List of Lebanon international footballers born outside Lebanon
References
External links
Jamal Taha at RSSSF