Belgium vs Egypt 15 June 2026 Prediction

Egypt is taking part in the World Cup for the fourth time, but it still does not have a single win at the tournament. It is hard to expect that to change in the opening round of the 2026 World Cup, as the Pharaohs will face an ambitious Belgium team that has not lost since March of last year.

Belgium Is Ready to Break Down an African Defense

The peak of Belgium’s golden generation came at the World Cup in Russia, but the Red Devils have still brought a very strong squad to the North American tournament. They went through qualifying without major issues, recording five wins in eight matches and avoiding defeat. Wales (4-3 and 4-2) and North Macedonia (1-1 and 0-0) did not prevent Belgium from finishing first in the group, and the Red Devils ranked second in all of European qualifying in goals scored, averaging 3.63 per match, behind only Norway (4.63).

Rudi Garcia’s team continued its unbeaten run in four friendlies, even though the first three opponents were all inside the FIFA top 20: the United States (5-2), Mexico (1-1), and Croatia (2-0). The 2018 World Cup bronze medalists played their final friendly against an African team similar in level and style to their upcoming opponent. Like Egypt, Tunisia relies on deep defending, but that did not stop Belgium from winning comfortably (5-0). A low-block approach is clearly not the best solution against Belgium, and the final friendly confirmed it: the Red Devils created a large number of chances from positional attacks, finishing with 4.06 xG and 66% possession.

Belgium’s squad includes all of its strongest players except Mika Godts. However, the young talent is currently behind Jérémy Doku in the competition for the left-wing role. Doku is one of the key players in the current national team, alongside Kevin De Bruyne, Youri Tielemans, Thibaut Courtois, and Romelu Lukaku. Lukaku has not fully regained form after injury, so Charles De Ketelaere is more likely to start. Still, the experienced forward can help from the bench, as he produced a goal and an assist in the last two matches despite limited minutes. The temporary absence of Zeno Debast is also not critical: Belgium played both June friendlies without the 21-year-old defender and did not concede.

Defensive Soccer Will Not Be Enough

Egypt is the most decorated African team, but in recent years the Pharaohs have fallen behind even at continental level, with no titles in 16 years. Still, the Red and Black qualified for the World Cup confidently, winning their group by a wide margin with eight victories and only two draws. However, the strongest opponent for Hossam Hassan’s team during that stage was Burkina Faso (2-1 and 0-0), whose limited level was recently visible in a 3-0 loss to Russia.

Egypt’s key matches in the fight for a playoff spot are still ahead, while the meeting with Belgium is mostly a chance to create an upset. The Pharaohs will try to do it in their usual way: by defending deep with almost the entire team and using rare vertical attacks. However, in four recent matches with similar opposition in terms of style and level, the North African side had little success: no wins against Brazil (1-2), Spain (0-0), Nigeria (0-0), and Senegal (0-1). Against teams from the FIFA top 10, Brazil and Spain, Egypt allowed at least 2.5 xGA in both matches.

That is not surprising, because Egypt’s strongest players are mainly in attack. Mohamed Salah, who has recovered from injury and has 65 goals in 114 national-team matches, and Manchester City forward Omar Marmoush, with 11 goals in 50 matches, need no introduction. Experienced Mahmoud Trezeguet, who recently had a strong spell in Turkey with Trabzonspor, is also worth noting, as is young Barcelona forward Hamza Abdelkarim, who can replace one of the leaders after halftime. Defensively, Mohamed Abdelmonem of Nice is the main name, but even he is far from peak condition after missing the 2025/26 club season with a serious injury. Egypt does not appear to have enough defensive quality to contain Belgium’s attack.

Belgium vs Egypt Predicted Lineup

Belgium (4-2-3-1): Courtois – Meunier, Mechele, Ngoy, De Cuyper – Onana, Tielemans – Trossard, De Bruyne, Doku – De Ketelaere

Will Not Play: Faes, Mangala, M. Keita, Bakayoko, Openda, Godts (all not in the squad), Debast (injured)

Manager: Rudi Garcia

Egypt (4-2-3-1): El Shenawy – Hany, Abdelmaguid, Abdelmonem, Fatouh – Lashine, Ateya – Salah, Zizo, Trezeguet – Marmoush

Will Not Play: Hamdy, Fouad, Issa (all injured)

Manager: Hossam Hassan

Referee: Ramon Abatti (Brazil)

Abatti has never previously officiated at a World Cup and has not worked matches involving Belgium or Egypt. The Brazilian referee is not especially lenient. In only one of his last six matches did he show fewer than four yellow cards. His foul numbers are even more notable: in eight of his last 10 matches, he called at least 30 fouls.

Belgium vs Egypt Prediction: Belgium Handicap -1.5

• Main prediction: Against teams with superior individual quality, Egypt tends to drop too deep and spend long periods simply trying to survive. Against a Belgium side with such an experienced and creative midfield, a long spell without the ball should eventually lead to mistakes in defensive midfield, and Egypt’s back line may not have enough quality to fix them. The biggest issue for the North African side should come on the right flank, where one of the best dribblers in modern soccer, Jérémy Doku, will face Mohamed Hany, who has never played outside the domestic league. Considering that Rudi Garcia’s team has just beaten a similar opponent in style and level, Tunisia, we will take Belgium handicap (-1.5) at 2.70. Another option is correct score 3-0 at 11.75.
• Goals prediction: One of Garcia’s main achievements as Belgium manager has been improving the defensive structure. The Red Devils no longer rely only on Thibaut Courtois: under the French manager, their average xGA is just 0.89. Egypt, meanwhile, creates even less against strong national teams, with a combined 0.67 xG across three matches against FIFA top-15 opponents this year. For that reason, an additional option to consider is both teams to score — no at 1.84.