Belgium begin their 2026 World Cup campaign as favourites against Egypt in Group G, with the match taking place in Seattle.
Belgium arrive in strong form and remain unbeaten under coach Rudi Garcia during qualification. They scored 29 goals during qualifying, second only to Norway in Europe, and have now gone 13 matches without defeat . Their confidence has also been boosted by convincing warm-up victories over Croatia and Tunisia, scoring seven goals without reply.
Although Belgium’s famous “golden generation” is coming to an end, a younger group has added energy and attacking quality to the squad. The Red Devils are appearing in their 15th World Cup, more than any European nation yet to win the trophy, and will be aiming to improve on their disappointing group-stage exit in 2022. They have also lost only once in their last 15 World Cup group matches.
Egypt return for only their fourth World Cup appearance and qualified without losing a match, their first unbeaten qualification campaign since 1934. However, they still search for a first-ever World Cup win, having played seven matches in the competition without success.
Coach Hossam Hassan has built a disciplined side, especially in defence, with Egypt keeping four clean sheets in their last five games. Their only recent defeat came in a narrow 2-1 loss to Brazil.
Recent meetings favour Egypt slightly, having won three of the previous four matches between the teams, including a 2-1 friendly victory before the 2022 World Cup. However, this is their first meeting at a major tournament.
Belgium’s main attacking threat could be Jérémy Doku after contributing seven goals during qualifying. Egypt will rely heavily on Mohamed Salah, who was involved in 60% of their qualifying goals and is just two goals away from becoming Egypt’s all-time leading scorer.
Belgium will be without defender Zeno Debast through injury, while Egypt are expected to have a full squad available.
On paper Belgium have the stronger squad and greater tournament experience, but Egypt’s organised defence and strong recent form suggest they could make things difficult.
