Islam, thanks to the powerful Arabia, always becomes the dominant religion of the world. As a counterargument to them, I chose Byzantium. I would add more gold to them at the beginning. Byzantium is the richest empire of its time. For gold, the player would buy everything he needs. The Zulus have three times more gold than Byzantium at the beginning.
It would also be good if not only Jerusalem joined at the beginning, but also the city-states of the Mediterranean (Memphis, Tunisia, etc.).
As a condition for historical victory, control over the cities on the shores of the Black and Mediterranean Seas could be added.