It is Friday, and Egypt will not sleep tonight. Neither will the Arab world.
It feels as though we, the Egyptians, have won the World Cup. In reality, we only defeated Australia and advanced to the Round of 16.
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| Our boys wheen Hossam Abdel Maguid scored the last penalty |
Yet this was the biggest match in the history of the Egyptian national team—at least until the next one.
Egypt defeated Australia in another dramatic, nerve-racking match, and the Arab world is celebrating as if we have already lifted the trophy.
I did not believe we could do it.
The Australian players were taller and physically stronger, while our Egyptian squad looked smaller, exhausted, and battered by injuries.
Mohamed Salah played all 120 minutes despite everything and even converted his penalty in the shootout.
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| Mohamed Salah, 2026 World Cup Pharaoh |
But somehow, it happened again. We won against all odds.
Or perhaps not entirely against the odds. Many football analysts had predicted an Egyptian victory, pointing to the teams' histories and the quality of their players.
Still, I remained pessimistic throughout the tournament. Years of World Cup heartbreak had left their mark on me, as had Egypt's disappointing performances—and misfortune—in recent editions of the Africa Cup of Nations after once becoming the undisputed kings of the continent.
I could not bring myself to watch the entire penalty shootout. Before the final two kicks were even taken, I already knew what had happened from the streets outside. I heard the screams of grown men and the desperate prayers of young boys crying, "Ya Rab"—"Oh God"—from the depths of their hearts.
The streets of Giza, Cairo, and cities across Egypt erupted with joy. The air shook with cheers, screams, car horns, and fireworks.
I was like Ibrahim Hassan, who buried his face in his twin brother Hossam Hassan's shoulder, unable to watch the penalty shootout. Every football fan knows that penalties are often decided by luck—or so we say. Looking back now, it feels like it was much more than luck.
Football analyst Mahmoud Salim analyzed the movements of Australia's substitute goalkeeper and presented the footage to the Egyptian players on a tablet during extra time, before the penalty shootout.
Salim first gained recognition on social media during the 2018 Russia World Cup for his tactical football analysis. Hossam Hassan recognized his talent and brought him into the Egyptian national team's technical staff, where his work paid off in one of the most crucial moments of Egypt's World Cup campaign.
It took Mohamed Salah only a couple of minutes to identify the Australian keeper's weakness, reminding us that penalty shootouts are not entirely about luck.
It was a football lesson for everyone.
Once again, Egypt made history.
For the first time in its football history, the Egyptian national team advanced to the Round of 16 at the FIFA World Cup under an Egyptian coach.
For the first time, an Egyptian goalkeeper saved two penalties in a World Cup shootout.
It was also Egypt's first appearance in the World Cup knockout stage—and its first-ever knockout victory.
Mostafa Shobair made history with a performance that surpassed even his father's achievements. Ahmed Shobair himself proudly admitted that his son had outdone him.
Yes, we also added another curious entry to the record books. For the second time in the tournament, our defender Mohamed Hany accidentally scored an own goal. But jokes aside, Hany prevented dozens of goals throughout this World Cup.
He was completely exhausted.
During that match alone, he collapsed twice, yet somehow managed to complete all 120 minutes. Many people—including myself—have wondered whether he may have suffered a mild concussion.
Haitham Hassan is another revelation. The young man is an absolute gem who should never be left on the bench under any circumstances.
Imam Ashour also joined the list of Egypt's World Cup goal scorers.
Beyond the football itself, this was the first time in my life that I witnessed Arab cities—from Riyadh and Gaza to Mosul and Benghazi—celebrating an Egyptian football victory with such genuine joy. Egypt's historic qualification for the Round of 16 felt like a victory shared by the entire Arab world.
In Gaza, people followed the match against all odds, searching for a brief moment of joy amid the destruction surrounding them.
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| Palestinians in Gaza celebrating the Egyptian football victory |
Thousands of Palestinians of all ages followed the match from their refugee camp.
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| Watching the game with the help of a projector by AFP |
Seeing them celebrate and smile made me prouder than ever.
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Palestinian children and teens watching the game "AFP"
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The Egyptian Committee in Gaza set up a small fan zone in the besieged, occupied sector.
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| Gaza's semi-fan zone by Ashraf Ramadan |
In Gaza, a Palestinian man celebrated Egypt's victory by handing out slices of watermelon to people in the streets.
Others were just watching the game from their mobile phones.
Palestinians also celebrated, whether in the West Bank or in cities like Beersheba.
Here are the Arab Palestinian tribes of Beersheba celebrating the victory.
Many of them celebrated the victory before they even knew that our coach, Hossam Hassan, had walked onto the pitch carrying a Palestinian flag—a gesture that made an unforgettable night even more memorable.
Several Palestinian flags were brought by fans.
Hossam Hassan running around the stadium with the Palestinian flag became one of the defining images of that historic match.
A photo of Hassan holding both the Egyptian and Palestinian flags became iconic for a whole generation.
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| Coach Hossam Hassan with two flags of Palestine and Egypt |
The Palestinian flag was not notably absent from the celebrations back home in Egypt.
There was also a Lebanon flag that could not be missed by anyone in the game.
It turns out that it was brought by a young Lebanese man, according to his grandma on Twitter.
Syrians celebrated it in several areas above them in Damascus.
Despite the ongoing war of words between Egyptian and Saudi troll accounts on social media, ordinary Saudis celebrated Egypt's victory as if it were their own.
Those videos made many wonder who is really behind these hate campaigns. I know who—and I'm glad he's watching and fuming with anger in his palace in the Kingdom.
Here is a video from the streets of Riyadh.
In Kuwait, veteran football fan Bu Jassem, who is known for supporting football teams, cried when we won.
Here is the fan zone in Iraq’s Baghdad.
Back in Egypt, it was a night to remember because it was early Friday morning.
Wedding parties included TV panels to air the match, celebrating the victory eventually.
The wildest video was a newlywed couple celebrating the victory in the street with total strangers.
Playing against Argentina does not scare me or other Egyptians because we know if we lose, we will already have made history and will lose to the previous World Cup winner.
We are not starstruck with Messi. We remember when Mess had headbutted Al-Ahly and Egypt National Team Yasser Ibrahim in a fight on the pitch in Al-Ahly vs Inter Miami in FIFA Club World Cup (CWC) 2025 from
Yasser Ibrahim is already injured. He may not play in the upcoming game. But aside from his talent as a defender in Al-Ahly FC, I know Hossam Hassan liked what Ibrahim did with Messi.
He was not starstruck, nor shy or afraid.
Yes, bring Messi to us, as our fans in the US said.
Also, bring up those two cute babies.
We are ready.
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