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Belgium and Egypt shared points in a 1-1 draw during their World Cup debut, held this Monday at Lumen Field in Seattle, Washington, in the opening of Group G of the 2026 World Cup.
An own goal by Egypt decided the draw in a match that for over 40 minutes; however, they missed a great opportunity to achieve their first victory in a World Cup, against a Belgium that is far from its best days.
The match started with tension from the very first quarter hour. In the 13th minute, Marwan Attia received the first yellow card of the game for Egypt, and just a minute later, Timothy Castagne saw the same card for Belgium. The physical tone was set from the outset.
It was Egypt who took the lead first and with authority. In the 19th minute, midfielder Emam Ashour struck a powerful shot following a pass from Mohamed Salah, making it 0-1. The goal was described as "an absolute stunner" by several sports media outlets.
Ashour, 28 years old and a standout player for Al Ahly SC, scored one of the most celebrated goals of the opening day of the group stage. The Africans maintained that lead throughout the first half and much of the second, with a well-organized defense that neutralized the Belgian attempts.
In the 34th minute, Ahmed Fatouh received a second yellow card for Egypt, accumulating cautions that would impact the team's performance in the second half.
Belgium reacted with changes at the start of the second half. At 56', Nicolas Raskin came on for Castagne, and Maxim De Cuyper replaced Amadou Onana; then at 66', Romelu Lukaku entered for Charles De Ketelaere as the third substitution.
It was precisely in the 66th minute when the equalizer arrived, but in the most unexpected way: the Egyptian defender Mohamed Hany put the ball into his own net to level the score at 1-1. The own goal was the only Belgian goal of the match, clearly summarizing the offensive difficulties of the Red Devils.
Despite having 54% possession, Belgium was unable to surpass the Egyptian goalkeeper on their own in the 90 minutes. The statistics reflect a very balanced matchup: 13 shots for each side, three on target for each team, and two yellow cards per side. Egypt created more corner situations—seven compared to two—demonstrating their ability to apply pressure in the opponent's half even after conceding the equalizer.
In the final minutes, both teams opted for substitutions. In the 76th minute, Hamza Abdelkarim came on as a substitute for Mohamed Salah—Egypt's historic captain at 33 years old and a key figure for Liverpool—and Zizo replaced Mostafa Ziko, but they could not make an impact. On the Belgian side, in the 86th minute, Hans Vanake replaced Kevin De Bruyne, and Matías Fernández Pardo came on for Jeremy Doku, but they were also unable to change the outcome. The score remained unchanged.
With this result, Belgium and Egypt each earn a point in the Group G of the 2026 World Cup, while Iran and New Zealand start with zero points. The tournament format qualifies the top two teams from each group along with the eight best third-place teams, so both selections still have a chance to advance, but they must secure victories in the coming matches to avoid relying on other results.
In the upcoming matches of Group G, Belgium will face Iran on Sunday, June 21, at 4:00 p.m. (local time) at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Egypt will play against New Zealand on the same date, but at 10:00 p.m., at BC Place in Vancouver, Canada.
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