Spokane to host Egypt and world superstar during World Cup

The Spokane Police Department has requested the purchase of four Skydio X10 drone platforms from Axon for the cost of $127,000, which it says are needed as the tournament brings "large crowds, international attention, and heightened security demands that require real-time intelligence and rapid response capabilities."

"Spokane has been identified as a host city for Team Egypt, which will require continual drone overwatch of training sites, potential lodging, and transportation routes," the request states.

According to the request, the drones will allow for "advanced autonomy, high-resolution visual and thermal imaging, and reliable performance in both day and night operations."

Egypt enters the tournament with middle-of-the-pack 300-1 odds to capture the World Cup . This year is the fourth time the team has qualified for the tournament, though it has not advanced out of the group stage and has not won a match in it. The team is headlined by Salah, who is widely regarded as one of the world's best soccer players.

The 2026 World Cup will consist of 104 matches in the U.S., Mexico and Canada and will begin on June 11. The final match to crown a champion will be played on July 19 at Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

State Sen. Marcus Riccelli, D-Spokane, who helped secure funding in the state capital budget to improve Gonzaga's soccer facilities, said in a statement Monday that the investment "helped this dream become reality and will ensure soccer will be supported in the community for years to come."

"As a coach, player, referee, and fan, I am ecstatic our community will have the rare opportunity to watch some of the world's best soccer players prepare for the World Cup," Riccelli said. "We have solidified our place as the soccer heartbeat of the Inland Northwest, and I am excited for fans across the country and world to see what we have to offer."

Ryan Harnetiaux, managing partner for Aequus Sports LLC, the parent company for the ownership group of the Spokane Velocity and Zephyr, said on Monday that the announcement is "incredible for the city of Spokane."

"And it says a lot about the infrastructure that we have here for soccer and for hosting an international team," Harnetiaux said.

While the process to bring the team was spearheaded by the City of Spokane and Gonzaga, Harnetiaux said the region has great amenities to house and entertain the players and their delegation as they prepare for their matches, and the needed facilities to help the players train.

It's proximity to both Seattle and Vancouver, B.C., where Egypt will play in the first round, also held appeal.

"Being less than an hour flight to Seattle, where they're playing several of their games, is really just an easy thing for them to hop on a plane the night before the game and head over there," Harnetiaux said. "And it's an incredible for Spokane to have these athletes in Spokane."

Harnetiaux said he hopes additional information will soon come out about when fans will be able catch a glimpse of the team in action in Spokane.

"In particular, Mohamed Salah, who's one of the best soccer players in the world, will be in Spokane for three weeks training," Harnetiaux said. "So hopefully the general public will get the chance to observe one of the training sessions, or a couple of them."

The arrival of Salah comes after ONE Spokane Stadium hosted a match between the Seattle Sounders and Vancouver Whitecaps FC in March, which featured Thomas Müller, also considered to be among the best players of his generation.

"We've gotten very lucky in the past year to have really high-caliber soccer come to the city of Spokane," Harnetiaux said. "And part of that is due to the stadium, the build of the stadium, which allowed us to bring those professional matches in in the last month and a half. And then the World Cup offering a place to host Egypt, or any other team, is an incredible statement about how Gonzaga has built out and cultivated their own training ground for their soccer program."

While Spokane will host the Egyptian team for around three weeks, Harnetiaux said he hopes the enthusiasm and excitement for soccer will spread to other teams in the area.

"World Cup coming here is incredible, but we're not likely to see that again for a while," Harnetiaux said. "And we've got really high-caliber, professional soccer, right here in our own backyard in the stadium."

Casey Curtis, head coach of the Mead High School girl's soccer team, said the arrival of The Pharaohs, "gives another opportunity to showcase what we think we're building, what we're trying to build, what the culture and the community is here."

"I think it's great," Curtis said.

The impact, Curtis said, will be tied to how many opportunities local fans have to see the team while they're in town.

"If it's completely closed off and there's no opportunities to observe a part of a training or a meet and greet or that sort of a thing, then I don't know that it will have any direct impact," Curtis said. "As a soccer fan, as someone who coaches the game, and my kids are in it, I'm excited to go watch a training session, or at least see them do something. But if we can't do any of that, then I won't really care."

Curtis said the arrival of professional soccer teams in the city, and the recent opening of ONE Spokane Stadium, has "helped generate more interest" in the sport he loves.

"I know there's more casual fans that go," Curtis said. "I think what these two teams are doing is really trying to be accessible to the kids."