World Cup 2026: Reaction as Egypt accuse Fifa of ‘fix’ following Argentina’s victory to set-up Switzerland tie

Shaimaa Khalil
BBC’s North America correspondent in LA

I’d just got off the phone with my nine-year-old nephew.

“Misha, it’s a disaster. We’ve been robbed!” he said in angry tears.

My guess is there are similar conversations happening in homes and family WhatsApp groups wherever Egyptians like my family are watching tonight. Heartbreak doesn’t even begin to cover it.

This match took fans on an emotional rollercoaster – from hope, to belief, to outright elation… before anger and finally anguish.

“As an American of Egyptian descent, I felt every minute of this,” Sami Elmansoury, 41, told me.

“Watching Egypt rise from their first ever World Cup win to going toe-to-toe with Argentina is something I’ll never forget. Nothing can dim what these players showed the world today. Their performance throughout this tournament will live on.”

And I think that’s what many Egyptians are feeling tonight. Pride… alongside heartbreak. They didn’t play like underdogs, they played like equals.

This team has done something no Egyptian side has managed before. They have lifted the spirits of a nation and a region. Their motto throughout this tournament has been ‘Mekameleen’, which means ‘we’ll keep going’.

And they did. Tonight, the streets of Cairo, Alexandria and cities across Egypt will be quieter than fans had hoped.

This World Cup may have ended in heartbreak, but it has also left Egyptians believing that this team belongs among football’s biggest nations.