Courtesy: FIFA.com


Egypt

The past
Egypt attended their first FIFA Futsal World Cup in 1996, when they achieved the first victory for Africa in the competition's history by beating Australia 8-2. Four years later they earned Africa a quarter-final berth with notable victories over the likes of Uruguay and Russia. Although a draw with Argentina would have granted them a place in the semis, they lost 3-4 to the South Americans. The Pharaohs appeared for the third successive time in Chinese Taipei and despite a first-round exit, they made their mark with the biggest margin of victory in the tournament, 12-0 over the hosts.

The present
This will be Egypt's fourth appearance at the world finals, and they will be looking to impress once again with at least a place in the second round and a team brimming with talent and experience. With a core of solid and experienced campaigners, and a few new faces in the team, the Egyptians are looking likely to exude all the mental confidence they need to make a mark in 2008.

The future
The Egyptians have one of the most organised futsal leagues in Africa and with the teams taking part in this league all sponsored by large companies, the five-a-side game appears to have a promising future in the land of the Nile.

Facts

Former stars
Gehad Arafa, Tamer Ismail, Samir Sabry, Adel Fathy, Samir Seif

Key players
Wael Abo-Qomsan, Mahmoud Abdel Hakim, Ahmed El Agouz

Qualifying statistics
Egypt drew with Angola and Mozambique in the qualifiers, proving that the Portuguese-speaking Africans deserve some attention in the future.

The numbers game
9 - The number of goals Egypt scored against Zambia in the qualifiers. The Zambians had no reply, losing 9-0.





Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com