Egypt’s only previous World Cup knockout match was in 1934; Abdulrahman Fawzi scored twice against Hungary, and Egypt lost anyway. That’s 92 years of a number that kept accumulating without resolving into anything. On Thursday at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, Mohamed Salah chipped a Panenka into the center of the net while Mat Ryan dove right, and the number stopped.
The match itself didn’t offer much beyond the scoreline. Emam Ashour headed Egypt in front in the 13th minute, the first Egyptian knockout-stage goal since Fawzi’s pair in that 1934 loss. Mohamed Hany put the ball into his own net in the 55th to level it at 1-1. Extra time produced nothing. Australia brought on Ryan as a penalty specialist in the 119th minute, a move that gestured at tactics without quite becoming them. Egypt scored all four of their penalties; Harry Souttar and Lucas Herrington missed for Australia, Herrington’s attempt rattling the crossbar. Hossam Abdelmaguid converted the decisive kick and the 92 years were over.
Salah’s role in all of this requires some attention. He is 34; he came into the tournament nursing a hamstring injury that was re-aggravated the week before against Iran; he played all 120 minutes. He created 16 chances in the tournament, tied for the most of anyone in the competition. He had eight touches in the opposition box against Australia. When it was his turn to step up third in the shootout, he chipped it — a Panenka, down the middle, unhurried — while Ryan committed. “If somebody was going to do it,” Salah said afterward, “it would be me. I have more experience than the others and I want to give them confidence.”
I’ve watched a lot of World Cup penalty shootouts. The ones that tend to stick are the ones where someone does something unnecessary. A Panenka is technically unnecessary; the ball will go in just as reliably if you pick a corner. What it communicates is that the moment hasn’t exceeded the person taking the kick. Salah, playing through an injury in the deepest knockout stage Egypt has ever reached, chose the Panenka. The moment had not exceeded him.
He wept after Abdelmaguid converted the final penalty. “I’m so happy to have made history with this team,” he said. “What happened today is history.” He said the word twice, which is not redundant; it’s the kind of thing you say when the fact still hasn’t processed.
A fair objection here: Egypt faces Argentina in the Round of 16, which means they could be eliminated within the week, which means the historic qualifier would be “first ever knockout win” rather than anything deeper. That’s accurate. It also doesn’t change what happened on Thursday. The 92 years were a real thing; the win ended them; what comes next is a different question. Salah told his players before the match to enjoy the moment and not let the pressure take it from them. The advice apparently held.
For more on the 2026 World Cup, follow our ongoing Soccer coverage. Egypt has been one of the more surprising stories of the tournament and our World Cup tracking has the full thread.
