Mohamed Salah Brace Fires Egypt to 2026 FIFA World Cup
Egypt has officially booked its place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, securing top spot in Group A of the African qualifiers with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Djibouti on Wednesday, October 8, 2025.
Liverpool superstar and Egypt captain, Mohamed Salah, delivered a masterful performance, netting a crucial brace to take his tally to nine goals for the qualifying campaign. The win ensures the Pharaohs will be one of the nine African nations to automatically qualify for the expanded tournament in North America (USA, Mexico, and Canada), with a game still to spare.
The victory, played at the Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Casablanca, Morocco, means Egypt becomes the third African team to seal their berth, joining fellow North African powerhouses Morocco and Tunisia.
Match Summary
Egypt asserted their dominance early in the game against a Djibouti side ranked 193 in the world.
Ibrahim Adel Opens the Scoring
The Pharaohs quickly took control, with Ibrahim Adel heading home an opening goal just eight minutes into the match. The goal came from a precise, clipped cross from the right wing by Zizo (Ahmed Sayed).
Salah Doubles the Lead
It didn’t take long for the lead to be doubled, courtesy of the team’s talisman. Six minutes after the first goal, Mohamed Salah raced onto a through ball from Trezeguet and poked the ball past the on-rushing Djibouti goalkeeper, Omar Mahamoud, to make it 2-0.
84th Minute: Salah Seals the Deal
Despite a dominant display and numerous chances after the break—including a chaotic sequence where they hit the post twice from a corner—Egypt had to wait until the closing stages to complete the scoring. Mohamed Salah secured his brace with a cool and classy finish in the 84th minute, latching onto a defense-splitting pass from Marwan Ateya to slot home the final goal for a resounding 3-0 victory.
The early goals allowed Egypt to dictate the pace for the remainder of the match, comfortably seeing out the victory and achieving the primary objective of qualification.
The Significance of Qualification
For Egypt, the qualification marks their fourth appearance at the FIFA World Cup finals (after 1934, 1990, and 2018). It is a significant return to the global stage after failing to qualify for the 2022 tournament in Qatar.
The result puts Egypt on 23 points at the top of Group A, five points clear of second-placed Burkina Faso, who defeated Sierra Leone 1-0 in their simultaneous fixture. With only one match remaining in the qualifying group, this lead is unassailable, guaranteeing Egypt’s automatic qualification as group winners.
Mohamed Salah’s return to the World Cup is a major story, as his last appearance in 2018 was hampered by a shoulder injury sustained weeks prior in the Champions League final. He will be looking to lead a strong Egyptian side in the expanded 48-team tournament next year in North America.
