Double the rewards for “Egypt’s victory over Australia”… and the return of Mohamed Salah confuses Hossam Hassan

The Egyptian Football Association allocated large financial rewards to the “Pharaohs” players, hours before facing Australia in the round of 32 of the 2026 World Cup.

An official within the administrative apparatus of the Egyptian national team, who requested to remain anonymous, told Emirates Al-Youm that each player will receive a total reward of 800,000 pounds (equivalent to about 60,000 dirhams – 16,000 US dollars) in the event of qualifying for the round of 16, distributed by 150,000 pounds for winning over Australia, and 650,000 pounds as a reward for qualifying to the next round.

The source added that the Egyptian Federation decided to double the rewards with every round the team overcomes in the tournament, as part of a motivational policy aimed at continuing to achieve positive results, after the team’s performance in the group stage and reaching the knockout rounds for the first time in its history in the World Cup.

This comes at a time when the Egyptian Federation is waiting to receive additional financial rewards from the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in the event of reaching the round of 16, as it will receive an additional four million dollars, bringing the total financial returns to 15 million dollars, including nine million dollars for qualifying for the finals, and two million dollars after passing the group stage, in addition to the reward for qualifying to the final 16.

The financial gains will not be limited to the Egyptian Football Association, as the clubs to which the team’s players belong are expected to benefit from the financial returns allocated by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) for the participation of their players in the tournament.

Al-Ahly will be the biggest beneficiary, as the value of what it will receive is estimated at about 80 million pounds, in light of the large number of its players participating with the national team, while Pyramids is expected to receive about 40 million pounds, compared to about 30 million pounds for Zamalek, which provides an important financial boost to the three clubs as the start of the new season approaches.

On the technical level, the Egyptian national team’s camp witnessed a remarkable development with the return of captain Mohamed Salah to full group training, after recovering from the injury he suffered during the previous match, which prompted the technical staff led by Hossam Hassan to reconsider the plan it intended to rely on against Australia.

The technical staff had initially settled on playing in a 3-5-2 system in anticipation of the possible absence of Salah, relying on three defenders, namely Yasser Ibrahim, Rami Rabia and Hamdi Fathi, and intensifying the numerical presence in the midfield, with Omar Marmoush and Zico leading the front line.

However, Salah’s participation in the entire training session on Wednesday without showing any signs of injury prompted Hossam Hassan to modify his technical perceptions and return to the 4-2-3-1 system, to take advantage of the offensive capabilities of the national team’s captain, who represents the most prominent element in the Pharaohs’ offensive system.

It is now expected that the Egyptian national team will start the match with a lineup that includes Mustafa Schubert in goalkeeping, and in front of him is a quartet of Mohamed Hani, Yasser Ibrahim, Rami Rabia and Karim Hafez, who is expected to compensate for the absence of Ahmed Fattouh after it was confirmed that his career in the tournament was over due to the injury he suffered against Iran.

In the midfield, Hossam Hassan is expected to rely on the duo Hamdi Fathi and Marwan Attia as the focal point, with an attacking trio that includes Mohamed Salah, Emam Ashour and Zico behind spearhead Omar Marmoush, while Mahmoud Hassan “Trezeguet” is likely to start the match on the bench, to be one of the most prominent cards that the technical staff may push during the second half.