Barca signs teen star set to play in the 2026 World Cup

Barca spends 1.7 million USD to sign Hamza Abdelkarim, the 18-year-old forward who is preparing to join Egypt at the 2026 World Cup.

Barca has finalized the signing of Hamza Abdelkarim for 1.7 million USD, converting his initial loan spell from Al Ahly into a permanent transfer. The 18-year-old Egyptian forward is considered one of his country's most promising young talents and has been called up to the Egyptian national team for the 2026 World Cup.

Abdelkarim joined Barca on loan from Al Ahly in january. After a series of impressive performances for the youth teams, the Catalan club decided to activate the buy option. Before his permanent move, he signed a contract with Barca Atletic, the reserve team playing in the Spanish fourth division. However, procedural issues prevented him from making an appearance for the team until march, when he debuted for the U19 team.

Hamza Abdelkarim debuted for Barca in 1/2026. Photo: FC Barcelona

He made an immediate impact, scoring in his first match against Huesca and later netting a hat-trick against UD Montecarlo. Despite these individual achievements, Abdelkarim also experienced two final defeats with Barca Athletic: against Real Betis in the Youth King's Cup and against Real Madrid in the Copa de Campeones.

Abdelkarim has not only earned a spot in Egypt's 2026 World Cup squad but has also been handed the number 9 jersey. He will play alongside top stars such as Mohamed Salah (Liverpool) and Omar Marmoush (Man City) in attack. The 18-year-old forward recently made his debut for the national team in two friendly matches: a 1-0 victory over Russia on 28/5 and a defeat against Brazil on 6/6. At the 2026 World Cup, Egypt will play their opening match against Belgium on 15/6, before facing New Zealand and Iran.

Abdelkarim's football journey began at 8 years old in Malaysia, where he developed within the Little League Soccer system before joining FC Kuala Lumpur. In 2016, he contributed to the team winning the first KL Cup title in the tournament's history.

In 2020, Abdelkarim passed trials to join the Al Ahly academy. By 1/2025, at just 17 years old, he received his first call-up to the first team for a match against Pharco in the Egyptian National League. Although he did not play, Al Ahly's coaching staff's decision was praised by experts. Tamer Hassan, coach of the Egyptian youth teams at the time, assessed Abdelkarim as having the potential to become a key player for the team in the future.

On 6/2/2025, Abdelkarim played his first professional match, coming on as a substitute for Emam Ashour late in the 2-1 victory over Petrojet. This milestone made him Al Ahly's youngest player in the 21st century, surpassing Ramadan Sobhi's previous record by 9 days. Following his impressive debut, Abdelkarim quickly attracted interest from Europe, with Dutch club Feyenoord reportedly interested in inviting him for trials. However, in early 2026, he extended his contract with Al Ahly until 2028 before making the move to Barca.