Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
Two of international football’s most storied men’s national teams Brazil national football team and Egypt national football team, will meet on June 6 at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland, marking a high-profile stop in the Road to 26 international series.
Tickets for the match will go on sale Thursday, Feb. 26, at 10 a.m. ET, with fans able to register for exclusive presale access through the event’s official platform.
A clash of global pedigree
Brazil enters the fixture as the most decorated nation in FIFA World Cup history. The Seleção has lifted the FIFA World Cup trophy five times in 1958, 1962, 1970, 1994 and 2002 and finished as runner-up on two occasions. It remains the only country to have participated in every edition of the tournament and holds a record 76 victories in 114 World Cup matches.
Egypt, meanwhile, carries historic weight as Africa’s oldest national team and one of the continent’s most successful. The Pharaohs have won the Africa Cup of Nations a record seven times. Though Egypt has appeared in the World Cup on three occasions, it holds the distinction of being the first African and Middle Eastern nation to compete in the tournament.
The two sides have met six times since 1960, with Brazil winning each encounter. Their most recent meeting came in 2011, making the upcoming match their first in more than a decade.
Cleveland’s growing soccer profile
Cleveland has increasingly positioned itself as a viable host city for major international sporting events. In April of last year, Columbus Crew hosted Inter Miami CF at Huntington Bank Field, drawing 60,614 fans — a club attendance record and the largest crowd for a non-NFL event at the home stadium of the Cleveland Browns.
Local organizers say the Brazil-Egypt matchup is expected to generate similar enthusiasm, particularly given the global followings of both teams and the growing U.S. appetite for international soccer ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
Part of a broader 2026 buildup
The Road to 26 series is co-promoted by Florida Citrus Sports and Unified Events, with the aim of bringing elite national teams to major American venues throughout 2026. The Cleveland fixture is part of a slate of international matches beginning in March and extending into June.
With the United States preparing to co-host the 2026 World Cup, organizers view events like this as both competitive tune-ups for participating nations and strategic showcases for American stadiums seeking to demonstrate their capacity for global football audiences.
For Cleveland, the June 6 showdown offers not only a meeting of football traditions from South America and Africa, but also another opportunity to cement its place on the international sporting map.
