Egypt kicked off their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign with a 1-1 draw against Belgium in Seattle.
The Pharaohs took a surprise lead in the 19th minute when Emam Ashour unleashed a powerful strike past Thibaut Courtois.
Belgium equalised in the second half when Mohamed Hany turned the ball into his own net under pressure from substitute Romelu Lukaku.
The result is an encouraging one for the seven-time African champions, despite being denied a first-ever World Cup victory.
If Egypt repeat this level of performance in their next games against New Zealand and Iran, they will have every chance of not only registering that long-awaited win, but also reaching the knockout stage for the first time in their history.
Egypt
Mostafa Shobeir (GK)
Mohamed Hany
Yasser Ibrahim
Hamdi Fathi
Ibrahim Adel 88′
Ahmed Abou El Fotouh
Karim Hafez 88′
Mohanad Lasheen
Marwan Attia
Mostafa Ziko
Zizo 76′
Mohamed Salah
Hamza Abdelkarim 76′
Emam Ashour
Rami Rabia 71′
Omar Marmoush
Belgium
Thibaut Courtois (GK)
Thomas Meunier
Nathan Ngoy
Brandon Mechele
Timothy Castagne
Nicolas Raskin 56′
Amadou Onana
Maxim De Cuyper 56′
Youri Tielemans
Leandro Trossard
Kevin De Bruyne
Hans Vanaken 85′
Jérémy Doku
Matias Fernandez-Pardo 85′
Charles De Ketelaere
Romelu Lukaku 66′
