Egypt vs Iran prediction, tips and odds | World Cup 2026

Egypt face Iran at Lumen Field in Seattle in their final Group G match at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, with a place in the Round of 32 and a first-ever progression through the group stage within reach.

The seven-time African champions go into the game with four points and need only a draw to advance, while Team Melli must win to have any hope of progressing.

Egypt have appeared at four World Cups but have never advanced past the group stage, with their 1934 debut seeing the Pharaohs become the first African and Arab nation to play at the tournament, though they exited in a straight knockout format with no pool phase involved, meaning this would be their first time qualifying for the knockout rounds in the modern sense.

Preview: Egypt vs Iran

Egypt drew 1-1 with Belgium on matchday one, with Emam Ashour opening the scoring in the 19th minute from a Mohamed Salah through-ball before Romelu Lukaku came off the bench to disrupt the game.

Mohamed Hany turned into his own net within 22 seconds of the Napoli striker entering the pitch to level things up.

The Pharaohs took a step into the history books on matchday two in Vancouver, claiming their first ever win at the World Cup, in an encounter where New Zealand led through Finn Surman's goal on 15 minutes but Mostafa Ziko equalised in the 58th minute.

Mohamed Salah put Egypt ahead in the 67th minute before teeing Trezeguet up for Egypt's third of the encounter with eight minutes to play to complete the 3-1 victory over their Oceania opponent.

The 34-year-old winger has now been directly involved in three of the Pharaohs' four goals in the ongoing World Cup, with that strike against New Zealand being his 68th in international football; he is now within one of Hossam Hassan's all-time Egypt record of 69.

Omar Marmoush provides the focal point up front, and while the Manchester City forward did not score against New Zealand, his movement created space that allowed Salah and Ziko to operate more freely; that combination will be Egypt's primary attacking plan against an Iran side forced to push for a result.

The Pharaohs have conceded just once in this tournament and that goal was an own-goal from a disrupted defensive situation, not from sustained opposition build-up play.

Iran recovered twice against New Zealand on matchday one, coming from behind after Elijah Just opened the scoring in the seventh minute and then again after the 26-year-old forward added a second on 54 minutes.

Ramin Rezaeian pulled the first back in the 32nd minute and Mohammad Mohebi equalised on 64 to secure the 2-2 draw.

The goalless draw with Belgium on matchday two came under unusual circumstances, with Iran's squad arriving in Los Angeles with less than 16 hours to prepare due to logistical difficulties linked to the diplomatic situation between Iran and the United States.

In that encounter, Alireza Beiranvand made several important saves to preserve the clean sheet, while Mehdi Taremi had a goal ruled out by VAR for offside.

Iran have now gone five games without defeat, having beaten Costa Rica (5-0), Gambia (3-1) and Mali (2-0) in their pre-World Cup games, and will be aiming to secure victory over another African opponent to secure their first ever knockout berth at the global tournament.

Team news: Egypt vs Iran

Egypt

Hossam Abdelmaguid is ruled out after picking up a head knock against New Zealand.

Hamdy Fathy is listed as a doubt, though his absence would not significantly affect the likely starting shape.

Salah is expected to start and has been in excellent form, having been directly involved in three of Egypt's four World Cup goals.

Iran

Rouzbeh Cheshmi participated in a full training session on Wednesday, confirming his recovery from the hamstring problem that kept him out of Iran's opening two group stage games; the midfielder is expected to be available for what is a must-win match for Iran.

Ehsan Hajsafi is expected to start, with the 148-cap captain providing Iran's key outlet on the left flank in a match where Ghalenoei's side need to create from wide areas.

Taremi arrives at this match goalless in the tournament following the VAR disallowance against Belgium, but the Olympiacos striker with 60 international goals to his name will be looking to break his drought here and inspire Iran to a crucial victory.

Egypt vs Iran injuries and predicted XIs

Egypt predicted XI (4-2-3-1): Shobeir; A Fatouh, Y Ibrahim, R Rabia, M Hany; M Lasheen, M Attia; E Ashour, M Salah, M Ziko; O Marmoush.

Iran predicted XI (3-4-2-1): Beiranvand; Nemati, Kanaanizadegan, Khalilzadeh; Hajsafi, Ghoddos, Ezatolahi, Rezaeian; Jahanbakhsh, Mohebi; Taremi.

Head-to-head: Egypt vs Iran

Egypt and Iran have met just once in their history, which makes any statistical analysis of the head-to-head record almost meaningless in terms of predicting this game.

That single meeting came at the LG Cup Four Nations Tournament in Tehran on 7 June 2000, a match that ended 1-1 after 90 minutes before Egypt came out on top 8-7 in a penalty shootout.

Seattle represents the first competitive meeting between these two nations at a World Cup, with neither side able to draw on any meaningful historical precedent to shape their approach.

What the absence of meaningful head-to-head data confirms is that neither side carries psychological baggage into this fixture; the outcome will be decided entirely on current form and the tactical demands of the group table.

Our Egypt vs Iran prediction and tips

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