Egypt are back at the World Cup for the first time since 2018, and they arrive in North America carrying one of the greatest players the continent has ever produced.
The Pharaohs have won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times but have found the World Cup far harder to navigate, qualifying for the tournament on just four occasions in 15 attempts — in 1934, 1990, 2018, and now 2026.
Coach Hossam Hassan — Egypt’s all-time leading scorer with 69 international goals — qualified his side by topping their African qualifying group, with Mohamed Salah leading all African scorers with nine goals across 10 matches.
Egypt are drawn in Group G alongside Belgium, Iran, and New Zealand, opening their campaign against Belgium in Seattle on June 15.
On paper, they have a genuine path out of the group.
With Salah at the head and Omar Marmoush providing a second world-class attacking threat, Egypt have more cutting edge in attack than at any World Cup in their history.
Here are the 10 best soccer players in Egypt at the 2026 World Cup.
1. Mohamed Salah — Forward (Captain)
Age: 33 | Club: Liverpool (England) — leaving at end of season
There are few more emotionally loaded stories at the 2026 World Cup than Mohamed Salah captaining Egypt at what is almost certainly his final major tournament.
Salah left Liverpool at the end of the 2025/26 season having scored 257 goals and provided 120 assists in 442 appearances — making him the greatest scorer in the club’s history and one of the most decorated individual performers in Premier League history.
He announced his departure from Anfield in March 2026, and heads into this World Cup as a free agent with his future club still to be confirmed.
On the international stage, he heads to the tournament just two goals short of Hossam Hassan’s all-time Egypt record of 69 goals, carrying 116 caps and 67 international goals.
At AFCON 2025, he was one of the tournament’s standout performers with four goals and one assist in six appearances.
In World Cup qualifying, he led all African scorers with nine goals across 10 matches and added three assists.
According to Fox Sports, he takes penalties and shares set-piece duties with Marmoush, and is virtually certain to start every match in North America.
“He is irreplaceable,” coach Hossam Hassan has said of his captain.
At 33, this is Salah’s last chance to deliver Egypt’s greatest-ever World Cup result on football’s biggest stage.
2. Omar Marmoush — Forward
Age: 27 | Club: Manchester City (England)
Egypt’s second world-class attacking weapon and the player who gives this squad a dangerous and unpredictable dimension beyond Salah.
Marmoush joined Manchester City from Eintracht Frankfurt in January 2025 for £59 million, having lit up the Bundesliga with 15 goals in 17 league appearances in the first half of the season.
His first full season at City was disrupted as he adapted to Pep Guardiola’s system, producing 3 goals and 3 assists in 21 appearances, but his quality was never in doubt.
He has 50 caps and 11 international goals and has been one of Egypt’s most important players in qualifying and at AFCON 2025.
When Salah and Marmoush both operate at their best simultaneously, Egypt are one of the most dangerous attacking teams in the tournament.
3. Mohamed El Shenawy — Goalkeeper
Age: 37 | Club: Al Ahly (Egypt)
Egypt’s most experienced goalkeeper and a player who has been the country’s undisputed number one for nearly a decade.
El Shenawy has 76 caps and was outstanding at the 2018 World Cup in Russia, making several crucial saves that kept Egypt in matches despite the team’s ultimate group-stage exit.
He is a commanding, authoritative presence in goal who marshals the penalty area with real authority, and at 37 he arrives at what will almost certainly be his final World Cup.
His domestic pedigree with Al Ahly — one of Africa’s most decorated and supported clubs — is unmatched in Egyptian football.
4. Trézéguet — Forward
Age: 31 | Club: Al Ahly (Egypt)
Egypt’s most experienced wide forward and a player who spent several years in the Premier League with Aston Villa before returning to Egypt.
Trézéguet has 96 caps and 23 international goals — the second highest total of any player in the squad — and brings a directness and pace from the right flank that gives Salah and Marmoush crucial support in attack.
He has been playing alongside Salah for the national team for almost a decade, and that mutual understanding and chemistry on the pitch is a genuine asset in a tournament environment.
5. Mohamed Abdelmonem — Defender
Age: 27 | Club: Nice (France)
Egypt’s most prominent European-based defender and the most technically accomplished centre-back in the squad.
Abdelmonem plays his club football at Nice in Ligue 1, giving him the top-level European experience that most of Egypt’s domestically-based defenders simply cannot provide.
He has 36 caps and 3 international goals and is the player coach Hossam Hassan trusts to organise the backline when Egypt are defending a lead or facing quality opposition.
His composure in possession and his ability to read the game intelligently make him the most important defensive figure in this squad.
6. Emam Ashour — Midfielder
Age: 28 | Club: Al Ahly (Egypt)
One of the most experienced and important central midfielders in the Egypt squad and a key figure in how Hossam Hassan wants his team to function.
Ashour has 29 caps and brings the kind of disciplined, tactically aware defensive midfield quality that protects Egypt’s backline and allows Salah and Marmoush the freedom to express themselves.
He has been a consistent performer for Al Ahly domestically and gives the national team a reliable engine in the middle of the park.
7. Ahmed Fatouh — Defender
Age: 28 | Club: Zamalek (Egypt)
One of Egypt’s most experienced full-backs and a player who has been a consistent performer for the national team throughout the qualifying campaign.
Fatouh has 39 caps and 1 international goal and brings the physical energy, defensive discipline, and positional awareness that Hossam Hassan demands from his wide defenders.
His experience of competing in the Egyptian Premier League alongside colleagues from Al Ahly and Zamalek in the national squad is a dynamic that Egypt handle better than almost any other African nation.
8. Hamdy Fathy — Midfielder
Age: 31 | Club: Al-Wakrah (Qatar)
A veteran of Egyptian football and one of the most experienced midfielders in the squad with 63 caps.
Fathy has been a dependable presence in Egyptian midfield for years, contributing 3 international goals across his career and bringing the kind of experience and reading of the game that a young squad needs around it.
At 31, he arrives at what could be his only World Cup with the experience of multiple AFCON campaigns behind him.
9. Ibrahim Adel — Forward
Age: 25 | Club: Nordsjælland (Denmark)
One of the most exciting young forwards in Egyptian football and a player who has been developing his game in Danish football at Nordsjælland.
Adel has 24 caps and 3 international goals and brings a youthful directness and technical quality from the wide positions that gives Hossam Hassan a different attacking option beyond Trézéguet.
He scored the opening goal as Egypt beat Djibouti 3-0 to secure World Cup qualification, which tells you about the importance he carries for the national team.
At 25, this is his chance to establish himself on the biggest stage.
10. Hamza Abdelkarim — Forward
Age: 18 | Club: Barcelona B (Spain)
The youngest player in Egypt’s squad and one of the most boldly selected teenagers at the 2026 World Cup.
Abdelkarim was born on January 1, 2008, and is 18 years old, already in the Barcelona B system — one of the most prestigious youth development environments in world football.
He has 2 caps and was described by Al Jazeera as “one of the most promising forward talents in Egyptian football” and selected for this squad having been in outstanding form for the Barcelona youth team.
His inclusion ahead of more experienced options was a calculated statement from coach Hossam Hassan about the future direction of Egyptian football.
At 18 and in the Barcelona system, the world is watching what comes next.
Egypt’s Golden Moment
Egypt have never been in a better position to make a World Cup run.
Salah, heading into his final tournament as the greatest Egyptian footballer of all time, will be desperate to deliver a moment that cements his legacy beyond the Premier League records and the club trophies.
With Marmoush alongside him, a defensively organised backline, and a coach who understands exactly what it means to score for Egypt, the Pharaohs are genuine dark horse contenders to progress from Group G.
If Salah can reach the Egypt all-time scoring record on the world stage, and if the team can find the form to match Belgium and push for the knockout rounds, 2026 could be the tournament that Egypt football fans remember for a generation.
Check out more on the best African countries in football, African football clubs with the most fans, every country that has won the World Cup, and the best soccer players of all time.
Who do you think will be Egypt’s best player at the 2026 World Cup? Let us know in the comments!
