Monday, June 22, 2026

2026 World Cup: The Pharaohs broke the curse, Egypt won its first WC match after 92 years.

When I saw the Egyptian national team's first-half performance against New Zealand at the 2026 World Cup, I decided to turn off the TV and get some sleep.

It was nearly 5 a.m. Cairo time, and after watching the Kiwis take the lead, it seemed that the old-World Cup curse haunting Egypt was still very much alive.

But my sleep was cut short by screams and cheers coming from the streets.

We had scored a historic equalizer.

The rest is history.

Since its first World Cup appearance in 1934, Egypt not only won its first-ever match in the tournament but also produced a stunning comeback, aka remontada, to go top of its group.

After a first-half header from New Zealand's Finn Surman, Mostafa Ziko rescued Egypt with a historic equalizer in the 58th minute.

The 29-year-old forward from Pyramids FC—not Al Ahly or Zamalek—truly became a household name.

Contrary to what some international commentators claimed, Ziko is not named after Brazil's legendary Zico. In Egypt, "Ziko" is a common nickname derived from Zaky or Zakaria. Mostafa inherited the nickname from his father, Zaky.

In Egypt, we often refer to footballers by their surname or their father's name. We do not call Mohamed Salah "Mohamed" or even "Mo." To us, he is simply Salah.

After Ziko's equalizer, Salah did not merely cement history—he wrote another chapter of it.

His goal in the 67th minute gave Egypt the lead and sent millions of Egyptians into disbelief.

The goal also allowed him to set another record, becoming the Egyptian player with the most World Cup appearances for the national team, with four matches.

He also surpassed Egypt's legendary 1934 striker Abdel Rahman Fawzy, who scored two World Cup goals, by taking his own tally to three—two in Russia 2018 and one in this tournament.

Salah now has 68 international goals, leaving him one behind current Egypt coach Hossam Hassan and two away from becoming the Pharaohs' all-time leading scorer.

Then came Trezeguet.

His goal in the 82nd minute completed the comeback.

Egypt had finally won its first World Cup match.

Here is a video summary of the goals.

Ninety-two years after its debut appearance.

For real.

I never thought I would say this, but I owe Hossam Hassan an apology as a coach. He remains Egyptian football's ultimate anti-hero, yet he is exactly the kind of coach the national team has needed for years.

The victory finally ended the infamous World Cup curse that had followed the Pharaohs since 1934.

The Prostrating Pharaohs of the AFCONs are back.

Until now, Egypt—one of Africa's most successful football nations—had failed to win a single match across its previous World Cup appearances in 1934, 1990 and 2018, exiting in the first round every time.

Ironically, many advertisers embraced this curse in their World Cup campaigns.

Commercials featured skeptical Egyptians confronting national team players who promised, "No, we're staying longer this time."

One campaign by Adidas featured Mohamed Salah joking, "If you're seeing this ad, then I scored a goal in the World Cup."

For years, that would have sounded like wishful thinking.

Then Salah scored against New Zealand.

Less than an hour after Egypt's historic victory, Addis Arabia released the short clip across its social media platforms, turning what had begun as a joke about Egypt's World Cup fortunes into a celebration of a moment many Egyptian fans had waited their entire lives to witness.

That's how desperate things had become.

Many of us genuinely believed we would be heading home after the group stage, especially after watching the struggles of several other Arab teams in the tournament.

Hope is a dangerous word for my generation in Egypt—the generation of the 2011 revolution.

I did not write a post about our draw against Belgium because hope is a dangerous thing for me. Despite one of the national team's best performances in years, I could not shake off the skepticism that comes from decades of disappointment. So I waited.

This was one of the most sleepless nights Egyptians have willingly endured, and thankfully, it ended in genuine happiness.

Personally, I know dozens of people who watched the match with friends in cafés because World Cup broadcasts remain locked behind expensive beIN Sports subscriptions. Many of them went directly from the final whistle to work.

Videos from across Egypt showed just how much people cared. Streets were packed, cafés overflowed, and celebrations erupted long before the final whistle.

In Cairo’s Downtown.

From Cairo’s Downtown

From Cairo’s Heliopolis

From New Cairo.

In Giza’s Mohendessin.

Tourists and journalists from the Gulf recording the celebrations early morning across Cairo.

This was from Alexandria.

And the Egyptian community in Canada celebrated too.

I must thank the Egyptian community in Canada for supporting Palestine proudly and openly.

This was before the game.

This was after the game.

Despite the ongoing genocide in Gaza, its great people celebrate the victory too.

I cannot fully describe the atmosphere.

Sometimes a little hope and a little happiness do not hurt.

Sometimes they are exactly what people need.

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