Dubai billionaire gives 59 cars to team that almost knocked Messi out of World Cup

The gift covers the entire 59-person delegation: the players, the coaching bench, and the technical, administrative and medical staff.

A spokesperson for the Al Habtoor Group told The National the cars, Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross crossovers, were being readied for shipment. The company had arranged the handover with the Egyptian Football Association.

Each Eclipse Cross retails in the UAE for about 107,000 dirhams (US$29,000), putting the total value of the gesture near $1.7 million.

“Egypt’s joy today is the joy of every Arab,” Al Habtoor wrote on X after Egypt’s 3-2 defeat to defending champions Argentina after leading 2-0 for a large part of match in the round of 16 on July 7.

He cast the team’s performance as a win for the whole region and said he had deliberately included the support staff because he sees success as the product of collective work.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, had earlier praised the team on X, writing that Egypt’s players “fought against the world champion until the very last minute.”

Egypt reached the World Cup round of 16 for the first time at the 2026 tournament in North America, drawing against Belgium and Iran and beating New Zealand in the group stage before beating Australia on a penalty shootout in the knockout stage to make the last 16.

In Atlanta on July 7, they led Argentina 2-0 in the closing stages before Lionel Messi inspired a comeback, Argentina scoring three times in 13 minutes to win 3-2 and reach the quarterfinals.

The squad flew home on July 10 to a hero’s welcome, riding an open-top bus past thousands of fans in the Mediterranean coast city of El Alamein.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El Sisi awarded the Order of Merit to every player and staff member.