ROME — Prominent Italian newspapers highlighted Egypt’s qualification for the Round of 16 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup after the Egyptian football team achieved a historic milestone by reaching the knockout stage for the first time in their World Cup history, following a victory over Australia.
The daily Il Giornale said “Egypt defeats Australia on penalties and reaches the round of 16… Salah scores a brilliant goal.”
The paper noted that it marked Egypt’s first-ever victory in a World Cup knockout match.
It described the match as evenly contested. Egypt took the lead in the 13th minute through a header by Ashour, before Australia equalized via an own goal by Mohamed Hany.
The Pharaohs showed resilience and dominated in the closing stages, creating several scoring opportunities. Australia substituted goalkeeper Mathew Ryan specifically for the penalty shootout, replacing Beach, but Egypt ultimately prevailed on penalties.
Sports outlet Tutto Mercato said “Egypt makes history: Australia falls on penalties, Salah leads the Pharaohs to the round of 16,” emphasizing Egypt’s historic qualification.
The newspaper praised Egypt’s flawless penalty shootout performance, with the team converting all four spot kicks despite Australia’s decision to bring on penalty specialist Mathew Ryan in the 120th minute. Ryan failed to save any of Egypt’s penalties.
Meanwhile, La Repubblica praised Egypt’s performance, noting that the Pharaohs secured victory in the penalty shootout after the match had ended 1-1 following 120 minutes of play.
Italy’s public broadcaster RAI likewise highlighted Egypt’s advancement to the Round of 16, noting that it was the country’s first-ever victory in a World Cup knockout match after defeating Australia 4-2 on penalties.
