Egypt has announced its full 26-player squad (+1) for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. It’s the fourth time the country has qualified for the FIFA World Cup. Egypt has never won a match at the FIFA World Cup, despite three historical appearances. In their 1934 debut, they immediately entered the Round of 16 simply because the tournament began directly with a 16-team knockout bracket. Upon returning to the world stage in 1990 and 2018, the Pharaohs were eliminated early, finishing at the bottom of their group on both occasions.
Head coach and former player Hossam Hassan announced the full squad earlier today. The captain and biggest star in the squad is the legendary Mohamed Salah. The 33-year-old Liverpool FC superstar sits just a few goals (67) behind Egypt’s all-time top scorer and his current national team head coach, Hossam Hassan (69). Other key players in the team are goalkeeper Mohamed El Shenawy (Al-Ahly), Hamdy Fathy (Al-Wakrah), Trézéguet (Al-Ahly), and Omar Marmoush (Manchester City).
Egypt’s head coach, Hossam Hassan, decided against selecting Nantes striker Mostafa Mohamed. Instead, the Egyptian manager preferred 18-year-old Barcelona B forward Hamza Abdelkarim, who has only previously featured for the under-17 national side. After the friendly against Russia on May 28, Egypt will cut one player to finalize their 26-man tournament squad, with one of the four goalkeepers most likely to be dropped.
Full Squad Egypt For The 2026 FIFA World Cup
Goalkeepers: Mohamed El Shenawy (Al-Ahly), Moustafa Shobeir (Al-Ahly), El Mahdy Soliman (Al-Zamalek), Mohamed Alaa (El Gouna)
Defenders: Mohamed Hany (Al-Ahly), Tarek Alaa (ZED FC), Hamdy Fathy (Al-Wakrah), Ramy Rabia (Al Ain), Yasser Ibrahim (Al-Ahly), Hossam Abdelmaguid (Al-Zamalek), Mohamed Abdelmonem (OGC Nice), Ahmed El Fotouh (Al-Zamalek), Karim Hafez (Pyramids)
Midfielders: Marwan Attia (Al-Ahly), Mohanad Lasheen (Pyramids), Donga (Al Najma), Mahmoud Saber (ZED FC), Zizo (Al-Ahly), Trézéguet (Al-Ahly), Emam Ashour (Al-Ahly), Mostafa Ziko (Pyramids), Ibrahim Adel (Nordsjaelland), Haissem Hassan (Real Oviedo), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool)
Forwards: Omar Marmoush (Manchester City), Aktay Abdallah (ENPPI), Hamza Abdelkarim (Barcelona B)
Qualification For The 2026 FIFA World Cup
Egypt had to qualify in a group with Burkina Faso, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau, Ethiopia, and Djibouti for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The Pharaohs started at home with a 6-0 victory over Djibouti with four goals from Mohamed Salah. Egypt also won their second and third game of the campaign against both Sierra Leone and Burkina Faso. All four goals came from forward Trézéguet. On June 10, 2024, the Egyptians dropped points for the first time. On the road in Bissau, the match against Guinea-Bissau ended in a draw.
After the draw, Egypt beat Ethiopia twice and Sierra Leone. In Ouagadougou, the Egyptians could qualify with a win over Burkina Faso. The match ended in a goalless draw, which meant that Egypt had to wait a month to secure its ticket for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On October 8, 2025, the Pharaohs beat Djibouti on the road 0-3 and qualified for the World Cup. Egypt won their last home group game against Guinea-Bissau by an early goal from Mohamed Hamdy. With nine goals, Mohamed Salah was the top goalscorer for the Egyptians during the qualifiers.
2026 FIFA World Cup
Egypt is one of the teams in Group G. The Pharaohs open their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign on June 15 in Seattle, Washington, against Belgium. Six days later, they will travel to Vancouver, BC, Canada, where New Zealand will be the opponent. Egypt’s final group stage match will be on June 26. Back in Seattle, they will face Iran. The two group winners and the eight best third-placed teams from each group will advance to the next stage.
Egypt Schedule
- June 15 – Belgium (3 pm EST)
- June 21 – New Zealand (9 pm EST)
- June 26 – Iran (11 pm EST)
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