{"id":775547,"date":"2026-07-03T02:27:13","date_gmt":"2026-07-03T02:27:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/775547\/"},"modified":"2026-07-03T02:27:13","modified_gmt":"2026-07-03T02:27:13","slug":"australia-vs-egypt-world-cup-how-egyptian-australians-are-navigating-dual-loyalties-ahead-of-the-knockout-clash","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/775547\/","title":{"rendered":"Australia vs Egypt World Cup: How Egyptian Australians are navigating dual loyalties ahead of the knockout clash"},"content":{"rendered":"

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There is only one group of Australians who will not be nervous going into Australia\u2019s knock-out World Cup match against Egypt<\/a> \u2013 Egyptian Australians.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a win-win. It\u2019s going to be pure joy, no matter who wins,\u201d says Yusra Metwally, a football tragic, lawyer, community advocate and proud supporter of both teams from Campsie in Sydney\u2019s west.<\/p>\n

\"\u201cWin-win\u201d:\u201cWin-win\u201d: Yusra Metwally will be supporting both Australia and Egypt on Saturday.Wolter Peeters<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen push comes to shove, it will be a painful watch because someone has to lose, and that will break my heart. But right now, it\u2019s pure joy.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Socceroos will take on the Egyptian national team in a do-or-die knockout clash kicking off at 4am on Saturday after both teams reached the tournament\u2019s round of 32.<\/p>\n

Related Article\"Mile<\/a><\/p>\n

Neither team has won a World Cup elimination game. The Pharaohs already made history at this year\u2019s tournament getting out of the group stage.<\/p>\n

Pubs broadcasting the match will be allowed to remain open or re-open for the early morning clash, while fans will also be able to gather at the live site in Darling Harbour\u2019s Tumbalong Park.<\/p>\n

Separately, Egyptian community organisations and the consulate have organised watch parties for the community and supporters at cafes, shisha bars, leagues clubs and in people\u2019s homes.<\/p>\n

The match represents a unique moment for one of Australia\u2019s oldest and most successful diasporas, distilling complex feelings of identity and ancestry into a knockout match. But to Metwally, dual identities are something to be embraced and celebrated.<\/p>\n

\u201cI carry a lot of joy that I\u2019ve been able to hold for both countries, one being my place of birth and one being my ancestral homelands,\u201d the 36-year-old said.<\/p>\n

\"FansFans are again expected to flock to the Tumbalong Park live site for the early morning kick-off. James Brickwood.<\/p>\n

To her, there is no choice between Australian or Egyptian loyalties, with the game being an opportunity to express her \u201cgenuine love and connection for both countries\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have space in my heart for two very different identities, and they\u2019re not in conflict with each other, they coexist, and that\u2019s how I\u2019ve been able to actually just embrace this opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eman Elhelw from Sydney\u2019s inner west said the match posed a conundrum for Egyptian Australians.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like picking between your favourite children,\u201d the 29-year-old, who believed both teams were evenly matched, said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhich makes it a lot harder to watch as someone who wants both of them to do really well.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt does feel like I have all my eggs in one basket. I\u2019ll die if it goes to penalties, it\u2019s so nerve-wracking.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sarah Yassien, co-founder of the Lotus Association, which focuses on supporting the Egyptian diaspora, was not concerned about divided loyalties because \u201cculture is complex\u201d.<\/p>\n

\u201cPatriotism can be complex as well. You can love something deeply and equally care about another culture deeply, and so I think you find joy in all of it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cAustralia gives you your home, your family, your livelihood, your work, the society that you\u2019re in, and Egypt gives you the culture in which you see the world. So it\u2019s actually really beautiful to be able to see them both together.\u201d<\/p>\n

Start the day with a summary of the day\u2019s most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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\"MostafaMostafa Rachwani<\/a> is a Parramatta reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald. He was previously the Community Affairs reporter at Guardian Australia.Connect via email<\/a>.\"JackJack Gramenz<\/a> is a breaking news reporter at The Sydney Morning Herald.Connect via email<\/a>.From our partners<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":775548,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[64,63,44],"class_list":["post-775547","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-australia","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/775547","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=775547"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/775547\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/775548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=775547"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=775547"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=775547"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}