Sport in Egypt
Egypt is a transcontinental country meaning its territory crosses two continents. Though the Egyptians might be divided in a lot of things, sports is where most of them set aside their differences and come together.
Egyptian football fanFootball is by far the most popular sport in Egypt and the Egyptian national football team called the “Pharaohs” has taken home the African Cup of Nations a total of seven times which includes a three-peat performance in 2006, 2008 and 2010. Without a doubt, this is why they are considered the most successful among the African national teams and one of the few African national teams that reached a single-digit ranking in FIFA (9th). The national team has only qualified for the FIFA World Cup three times, the most recent in Russia 2018.
Football is not the only popular sport in Egypt though. They also love playing tennis and squash. Their squash team is one of the fiercest competitors for international championships since the early part of the 20'th century. Egypt's Ramy Ashour (2010) and Amr Shabana (2006) both received the rank "World's Number One Squash Player". Their basketball team also hold records African Championship, Basketball World Cup as well as the Summer Olympics. Egypt first competed in the Olympic Games in 1912 and has taken a total of 26 Olympic medals to date (including 2012).
Below are details of sports, sporting events and sports people related to Egypt. Is there something missing? If you know of something that should be listed here, please let us know.
Popular sports of Egypt
- Football (Soccer), tennis, squash, basketball, handball.
Traditional or Regional Sports of Egypt
- Speed-Ball — an Egyptian racquet sport where player hit a ball suspended from a central pole
Egypt Sporting Success
- African Cup of Nations (football) seven times winners (1957, 1959, 1986, 1998, 2006, 2008, 2010)
- 2001 FIFA Youth World Cup winners (held in Argentina)
Great athletes from Egypt
- Alaaeldin Abouelkassem (fencing)
- Ramy Ashour (squash)
- Dr.Rania ElWani (swimming)
- Abdellatief Abouheif (swimming)
- Hossam Hassan (football)
Egypt Sports trivia
- Egypt's first-ever Olympic gold medalist was El Sayed Mohamed Nosseir, who won gold in weightlifting at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam.
- In 1934 Egypt became the first African team to play in the World Cup finals
Egypt at major events
Past sporting events hosted in Egypt
- 1939 World Table Tennis Championships in Cairo
- 2009 - U/20 FIFA World Cup.
- 2019 African Cup of Nations (Football)
Upcoming sporting events in Egypt
- 2027 African Games, Cairo
Annual sporting events held in Egypt
- Egyptian Premier League, with the very popular Cairo Derby between Egyptian clubs Al Ahly SC and Zamalek SC.
Sporting Facilities in Egypt
- Cairo International Stadium
- Borg El Arab Stadium in Alexandria
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