Ethiopia vs Egypt

In round five of the qualifications, Egypt will play Ethiopia on Friday in an attempt to move one step closer to earning a ticket at the 2026 World Cup.

Due to Morocco's inability to satisfy site requirements, the game will take place at Larbi Zaouli Stadium in Morocco.

With 10 points from three victories and a tie, Egypt leads Group A going into their opening game of the year and hopes to continue where they left off in their World Cup qualifying campaign.

Egypt kicked off their campaign in dominant fashion, thrashing Djibouti 6-0 in November 2023 before securing a comfortable 2-0 win over Sierra Leone just three days later. These victories set the stage for their African Cup of Nations (AFCON) journey in Ivory Coast, boosting their confidence ahead of the tournament.

However, their AFCON run did not go as planned, as the record champions were eliminated in the round of 16 after a penalty shootout loss to DR Congo. This disappointing exit led to the dismissal of then-head coach Rui Vitoria.

Following the tournament, Egypt resumed their World Cup qualifying efforts under new head coach Hossam Hassan. His tenure began with a victory over Burkina Faso, but the momentum was short-lived as they were later held to a 1-1 draw by Guinea-Bissau.

Since their last World Cup qualifier in June, the Pharaohs have played eight matches, winning their first four before struggling through a four-game winless streak.

Six of those matches were part of the AFCON qualifiers, where Egypt finished at the top of their group with 14 points from four wins and two draws, securing their spot in the tournament in Morocco.

More recently, in the African Nations Championship qualifiers, Egypt suffered a 4-2 aggregate defeat, drawing 1-1 in South Africa before enduring a surprising 3-1 loss in the home leg.

Now leading their World Cup qualifying group by four points over second-placed Guinea-Bissau, Hassan’s squad will be eager to widen the gap with a win on Friday. However, they face a challenging opponent who won their only previous encounter outside of Egyptian territory.

On the other hand, Ethiopia, under the guidance of Mesay Teferi, are aiming to turn things around after a series of disappointing performances. They failed to qualify for both AFCON in Morocco and the 2024 African Nations Championship.

Teferi was appointed ahead of Ethiopia’s final two AFCON qualifiers, but his arrival couldn’t change their fortunes, as the Walia finished at the bottom of Group H. Their struggles continued in the CHAN qualifiers, where they were eliminated following a 4-1 aggregate loss to Sudan.