One of Africa's biggest teams is now potentially facing a shock exclusion from the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
The qualifiers for the next World Cup in North America are already underway, with the bulk of the CAF nations having played four qualification games so far.
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Qualification for the tournament will resume in March 2025, with the extended 48-team format set to see nine African nations to qualify for the global showpiece, which will be hosted by the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
However, one of the continent's biggest teams could miss out on the competition due to a FIFA sanction.
According to Swiss news outlet Blick, Egypt could be excluded from the next World Cup due to an outstanding fine they are yet to settle.
It is said the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) is locked in a contract dispute with a company from Switzerland that handles the body's international matches.
On 5 December 2023, a FIFA tribunal ordered that the EFA to pay a fine for breaching their contract with the Swiss company, but despite the ruling, the Egyptian organisation has so far failed to settle the debt, resulting in further sanctions being imposed on them.
Additional penalties were confirmed in February 2024, with the EFA given 30 days to comply, but by August, the penalties were still unpaid.
It is understood that FIFA has since issued another fine and a final warning, with the EFA being granted another 30-day extension to settle the dispute.
Should the organisation fail to comply beyond the latest extension they have been given, this could result in the Pharaohs' exclusion from the World Cup qualifiers, thus effectively denying them a spot at the showpiece in North America.
Egypt are currently in a commanding position to qualify for the 2026 World Cup, sitting on top of their qualification group with 10 points from four matches.
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The threat of missing the next showpiece could thus have catastrophic consequences for Egypt, with their last qualification coming at the 2018 World Cup in Russia.