After 28 years away, Egypt are returning to the FIFA U-17 World Cup™ in a long-awaited comeback that revives a dream left on hold for far too long. Their berth offers a fresh start and a golden opportunity for a new generation to prove themselves on the world stage.
The road to qualification was not easy for the Young Pharaohs, who faced tough competition in the CAF U-17 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) following a 14-year hiatus. Despite all the challenges and setbacks in the continental showpiece, this new crop demonstrated remarkable perseverance, writing their own chapter in history and securing a ticket to Qatar 2025.
At the helm is Ahmed El Kass, a former player who featured in Egypt’s campaign at the FIFA World Cup Italy 1990™. The 60-year-old brings a wealth of experience to the dugout, and is keen to instil confidence, discipline and determination in his charges and transform pressure into motivation.
Despite taking over at a difficult moment, he managed to lead the team to the Union of North African Football title in 2024 and a spot in the continental tournament, leading to their qualification for the World Cup.
Speaking with FIFA, El Kass discussed the achievement of reaching the World Cup, Egypt’s competition in Group E and their preparation for the tournament.
Ahmed El Kass: Of course, I’m thrilled we qualified for the World Cup. The journey was anything but easy, but we were playing to bring joy to the Egyptian people, and we were able to do that.
We came in as a fourth seed as it was the first time we’d qualified in 14 years. That placed us in a tough group and one that was considered the strongest in the whole tournament. We came up short in the first two matches against South Africa and Burkina Faso, but we managed to keep our World Cup hopes alive by beating Cameroon and then Angola in the play-off.
We could’ve done better than that, but our primary objective at the Cup of Nations was to qualify for the World Cup after 28 years away and we succeeded in doing that. That’s the most important thing.
I think having a tournament as big as the World Cup in an Arab country like Qatar is fantastic. It’s a boost for all the Arab teams because it gives players a sense of comfort and confidence. The atmosphere and climate will be familiar to us and that will help our players to adapt quickly and deliver strong performances. And Qatar have already proved their ability to host global tournaments, so we know all the players will get an amazing, professional experience.
We started by holding a camp at the beginning of July, which was hugely important for getting the players ready both technically and physically. The World Cup is a major event, followed worldwide, and we’ll face different styles of football there. During that camp, we tested some new local talent, along with several dual-nationality players, who will be evaluated as we move forward.
We’re currently preparing to head off for two friendlies against Saudi Arabia, then the U-20 Gulf Cup, which I asked to play in despite the age difference. The most important thing for us is to play as many matches as possible, to gain experience and correct mistakes, regardless of the results.
It’s certainly a strong group, and the matches will be tough. There are no easy groups in the World Cup, and we respect all the teams. We’ve already begun studying the other competitors in our group to identify their strengths and weaknesses and settle on the best style of play for each match. I hope we live up to expectations and deliver good performances in the tournament.
Reaching the World Cup was a dream of mine. Since the team first came together, I’ve spoken with the players about our objective being to qualify. We knew there were obstacles we had to overcome first, and that we’d need to take it one step at a time, and we ultimately succeeded in doing that.
While it’s an honour just to go to Qatar, what we’re really going for is to compete, like every other team. Things may be different for us – to be absent for so long from both African and global competition is something that has impacted the players. So, we’ll give it our all to go as far as possible in this global event.
It gives youngsters a golden opportunity to compete against the world’s best, and the continuity it creates will help produce more mature, more confident players. It will demand long-term planning because you need to build a new team almost every year, but in spite of the challenges, with good management it could definitely be a major step in the development of youth football.
The fans are hugely important. Of course, with the tournament being held in an Arab country, we’ll have extra motivation in terms of fan support. We’re expecting a strong turnout from the Egyptian and Arab communities. We hope the fans will be behind us and that they’ll give the players the support they’ll need.
