2026 World Cup: Egypt Forced Into Last-Minute Kit Design Change

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His passion for sports extends further than football, as he has covered several sports for GMS, including Boxing, Tennis, and Wrestling. Sign in to your GiveMeSport account The 2026 World Cup is now underway, but a second team has seen its preparations interrupted by FIFA's strict kit regulations.

First, Haiti were ordered to remove an image depicting a war scene from their shirt before their opening World Cup game against Scotland. The kit was deemed too 'political' and therefore didn't fit into FIFA's strict parameters.

Now, a second nation has been told they must make significant changes to their jersey before even kicking a ball at the United States, Canada and Mexico-based tournament.

Mohamed Salah's Egypt are the latest team to be punished for not meeting FIFA's rules in a new crackdown. The Pharaohs will face Belgium in their first Group G match on Monday, before then playing against Iran and New Zealand.

However, they'll have to do so without the seven stars they normally have above their crest. Egypt proudly don the stars to symbolise how many times they've won the Africa Cup of Nations. But football's governing body has deemed that unsuitable for the World Cup.

New guidelines state that only World Cup wins can be recognised on shirts being worn during the competition. That means continental trophies such as AFCON, European Championship or Copa America titles cannot be shown in the form of a star.

That's not the only change the African nation will have to make. The gold numbers and writing have also been rejected by FIFA. Competition officials decided the metallic gold numerals weren't suitable for visibility reasons.

The Egyptian King could be set to stay in English football as transfer links heat up this summer.

This will be their fourth appearance at World Cup finals, having most recently played in the 2018 group stages. Due to the teams in their group and the fact more teams advance, Egypt will be hoping to reach the knockout rounds this time around.

Due to the guidelines allowing only countries that have won the World Cup to don stars on their shirts, it means only eight nations can do so. One of them, Italy, isn't even at this year's competition after failing to qualify.

This summer's World Cup is bound to turn the USA, Canada, and Mexico into three of the most fashionable nations on the planet.

Brazil (5), Germany (4) and Argentina (3) are the other most successful nations on the biggest international stage, and will all have multiple stars on their kits this summer. France and Uruguay will be allowed to have two stars, while England and Spain have both won the World Cup once each.

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