The Egypt World Cup 2026 squad is shaping up.
Led by Mohamed Salah and Omar Marmoush, two of the Premier League's brightest stars, they may spring a surprise or two in Canada, Mexico and the United States next summer.
November saw them take on two fellow sides who qualified for the tournament next summer – but now they have a break, with two more competitions available to win before heading off to North America.
The Arab Cup is coming up for the Pharaohs ahead of AFCON, so there's plenty of opportunity to impress the manager ahead of next summer.
Egypt qualified in impressive fashion for the World Cup, conceding just twice across 10 games, and Salah was, of course, instrumental. Ranked at no.1 FourFourTwo's list of the best African footballers ever, he is now the top scorer of all time in CAF World Cup qualifiers, scoring 20 times, nine times in qualification for the 2026 tournament.
Their squad boasts an impressive amount of talent based in Egypt, with several members of the Al Ahly squad, the most successful African team of all time, featuring regularly.
With an Arab squad purely consisting of stars from the Arab world, there's the opportunity for more players to stake a claim for a place in Hassan's plans.
Squad
Egypt's World Cup 2026 squad: The selection for the 2025 Arab Cup
- GK: Mohamed Awad (Zamalek)
- GK: Ali Lotfi (ZED)
- GK: Mohamed Bassam (Ceramica Cleopatra)
- DF: El-Wensh (Zamalek)
- DF: Karim Fouad (Al Ahly)
- DF: Karim El Eraki (Al Masry)
- DF: Ahmed Hany (Ceramica Cleopatra)
- DF: Yassin Marei (Al Ahly)
- DF: Ragab Nabil (Ceramica Cleopatra)
- DF: Hady Reyad (Petrojet)
- DF: Yehia Zakaria (Ghazl El Mahalla)
- MF: Mohamed Elneny (Al Jazira)
- MF: Amr El Solia (Ceramica Cleopatra)
- MF: Afsha (Al Ahly)
- MF: Mostafa Saad (ZED)
- MF: Akram Tawfik (Al-Shamal)
- MF: Mido Gaber (Al Masry)
- MF: Islam Issa (Ceramica Cleopatra)
- MF: Ghanam Mohamed (Modern Sport)
- FW: Mohamed Sherif (Al Ahly)
- FW: Hossam Hassan (Modern Sport)
- FW: Ahmed Atef (ZED)
- FW: Mostafa Shalaby (National Bank of Egypt)
Fixtures and results
African Cup of Nations 2025 – December 29: Egypt vs Angola, Adrar Stadium, Agadir, Morocco
African Cup of Nations 2025 – December 26: Egypt vs South Africa, Adrar Stadium, Agadir, Morocco
African Cup of Nations 2025 – December 22: Egypt vs Zimbabwe, Adrar Stadium, Agadir, Morocco
Arab Cup 2025 – December 9: Egypt vs Jordan, Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, Qatar
Arab Cup 2025 – December 6: United Arab Emirates vs Egypt, Lusail Stadium, Lusail, Qatar
Arab Cup 2025 – December 2: Egypt vs Kuwait, Lusail Stadium, Lusail, Qatar
November 17: Egypt 1p-1 Cape Verde, Hazza bin Zayed Stadium, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates
November 14: Uzbekistan 2-0 Egypt, Al Maktoum Stadium, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
October 12: Egypt 1–0 Guinea-Bissau, Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt
October 8: Djibouti 0–3 Egypt, Larbi Zaouli Stadium, Casablanca, Morocco
September 9: Burkina Faso 0–0 Egypt, Stade du 4 Août, Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
September 5: Egypt 2–0 Ethiopia, Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt
March 25: Egypt 1–0 Sierra Leone, Cairo International Stadium, Cairo, Egypt
March 21: Ethiopia 0–2 Egypt, Larbi Zaouli Stadium, Casablanca, Morocco
Manager
Who is Egypt's manager?
Hossam Hassan is Egypt's national team coach, and is currently their all-time top scorer, although Mohamed Salah may have something to say about that in the next 12-months.
He has had a bonkers managerial career, having 17 separate managerial stints, including five with Al Masry.
Before being appointed Egypt's national team manager, he was in charge of Modern Future, but he never managed a game, and was released to lead the national team.
Star player
Who is Egypt's star player?
Mohamed Salah needs no introduction. He is ranked at no.1 in FourFourTwo's list of the best African footballers ever, no.81 in FourFourTwo's list of the greatest players of all time and no.5 in FourFourTwo's list of the greatest Premier League players of all time.
He recently hit 250 goals for Liverpool with a strike against Aston Villa and will be heading to his second World Cup with the Pharaoh. He has scored 63 times for is country, putting him six goals off the record, which is currently held by his national team manager Hassan.
Should Egypt have any chance of success in north America, Salah will be at the centre of it.
Best XI
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