“History has already been written.” Tears of exit turn into pride in an exceptional World Cup for the Pharaohs

Egypt’s historic adventure in the 23rd FIFA World Cup, held in its 23rd edition in North America, ended at the eighth final with its dramatic loss to defending champion Argentina 3-2 in the last breath, after it had been leading 2-0 until the 79th minute on Tuesday in Atlanta, but the fans in Cairo stood to salute a team that had taken the country further than ever before.

Ismail Fawzi, 39 years old, who watched the match with hundreds of fans in a café in the Heliopolis district, east of Cairo, said, “We feel sad, of course, because we believed in the possibility of going further.”

“But when you think about everything this team has done, you can’t help but feel proud,” he added. They gave us memories we will never forget. Yes, we lost, but history has already been written.

For the first time in the history of its four participations in the World Cup, Egypt achieved victory in a match, qualified for the knockout rounds, and then won its first match in it, in an unprecedented achievement in the history of the “Pharaohs.”

At the Heliopolis Café, feelings ranged between disappointment and pride after Argentina turned the tables in the last moments.

Tears flowed at the final whistle, but minutes later, applause rose and the fans stood to salute the players’ achievement.
Farida Hamdi, 27 years old, said: “This is not the end we wanted, but no one can erase what these players achieved.” They made every Egyptian believe that our place is among the biggest teams.”

For many decades, Egypt’s story in the World Cup has been linked to attempts close to success and untapped potential.
Egypt was the first African and Arab country to participate in the tournament in 1934, but it exited early.

Then she waited 56 years to return, and left the Italy 1990 finals without any victory, while her last participation in Russia 2018 ended with three defeats in the group stage.

Hamdi added, “Before this World Cup, our dream was just to qualify.” Now, we feel sad because we were eliminated from the round of 16, and this in itself makes a difference. The next generation will dream more thanks to this team.”