Australia vs Egypt: Round of 32 Preview at World Cup 2026

On Friday, July 3, Australia and Egypt will meet at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, USA, in a Round of 32 clash at the 2026 World Cup. Kickoff is set for 9:00 PM local time, with Uruguay’s Gustavo Tejera as the referee. The Socceroos opened their campaign with a solid 2-0 win over Turkey, then fell 2-0 to the United States. A goalless draw with Paraguay in the final group match was enough to secure second place in the group with four points, two behind group winners USA. Australia has prior knockout-round experience at World Cups — reaching the Round of 16 in 2006 and 2022, both times eliminated by eventual champions Italy and Argentina, respectively. Egypt, managed by Hossam Hassan, also finished second in their group behind Belgium, collecting five points. They started with a 1-1 draw against Belgium, followed by a 3-1 win over New Zealand, and another 1-1 draw with Iran in the final group stage match. Belgium topped the group on goal difference. This is only Egypt’s fourth World Cup appearance, and the first time they’ve advanced past the group stage since 1934. In 2018, they lost all three group matches, making this campaign a historic achievement. The two nations have met just once before — a friendly in November 2010 that Egypt won 3-0. If Australia wins, they will face either Argentina or Cape Verde in the Round of 16. For Egypt, the same opponents await in the next round. Projected lineups: Australia: Beach — Gerrrington, Souttar, Circati — Behich, O’Neill, Irvine, Bos — Metcalfe, Irankunda — Toure. Egypt: Shobeir — Hafez, Ibrahim, Rabia, Hany — Attia, Saber — Ashour, Salah, Zico — Marmoush.