Arab World Set for Record Eight-Team Presence at 2026 World Cup

Arab football is poised to reach its highest-ever representation at the 2026 World Cup, with eight teams qualified for the tournament hosted jointly by the United States, Mexico and Canada. Egypt, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and first-time qualifiers Jordan will give the Arab world its largest participation in World Cup history. The total number of Arab teams to have appeared in the tournament since 1930 will rise to 10. The region’s World Cup journey began with Egypt’s appearance at the 1934 Italy tournament and resumed after a long gap with Morocco’s return in 1970. Tunisia delivered the first historic Arab victory in 1978, beating Mexico 3-1. Algeria’s wins over West Germany and Chile in 1982, followed by Morocco becoming the first Arab team to reach the round of 16 in 1986, raised the competitive benchmark for the region. Later milestones included Saudi Arabia’s run to the round of 16 in 1994 and Algeria’s widely noted performance against Germany that went into extra time in 2014. Morocco’s run at the 2022 Qatar World Cup lifted the team to the semi-finals as the first Arab and African side to reach that stage, finishing fourth in the world. The path from Egypt’s debut in 1934 to the record participation expected in 2026 underscores how Arab football has moved to a new level on the global stage, capped by Morocco’s historic success in Qatar.