# Egypt propose gradual reduction in foreign players in Premier League

Egypt national team director Ibrahim Hassan says the Egyptian Football Association has been given a proposal to gradually reduce the number of foreign players allowed in the domestic league, in an effort to create more opportunities for local talent.

Hassan also said the national team had worked with the Egyptian Professional Clubs Association to reduce the number of league matches and create a more consistent season schedule.

“ Hossam Hassan is monitoring a number of players outside Al Ahly and Zamalek, and in the coming period you will see new players from other clubs. There will be gradual change and renewal, and anyone who proves capable of adding value to the national team will be given his opportunity,” Ibrahim Hassan told UAE newspaper Al Bayan.

The Egypt manager asked supporters to put club loyalties aside when assessing national-team selections.

“ I hope the fans move away from club affiliations, because in the national team we do not look at club shirts. We select the player capable of achieving success with us, and our only interest is securing the best results for the national team,” he said.

Hassan said the aim since the current national-team management took charge had been to ensure the Egyptian Premier League started and finished on fixed dates, in line with leagues in Europe and the Arab world.

“For years, Al Ahly and Zamalek players did not receive any rest because of the overlap between competitions,” he added.

He said the national team had cooperated with the clubs’ governing body to introduce a new competition format that would reduce the number of matches.

“We worked with the league association to establish a new system for the competition that reduces the number of matches. This helped bring the season to an end in May and gave the players an appropriate period for rest and preparation before the new season,” Hassan said.

“The competition also continued until the final round last season, with the title not decided until the final week. That confirms the success of the current system.”

Hassan said the long-term plan was for the Egyptian Premier League to return to 18 clubs, while the number of foreign players would be reduced gradually.

“Our plan is for the league to return to 18 clubs, with the number of foreign players reduced step by step, so that the Egyptian player has a greater opportunity,” he said.

“We have started to suffer a shortage in some positions, such as right-back, left-back and centre-forward, because of the heavy reliance on foreign players.”

He added that the situation was affecting Egypt’s national teams and that the proposal submitted to the Football Association was intended to support the development of domestic players.

“This affects the level of the national teams. That is why we presented a proposal to the Football Association aimed at gradually reducing the number of foreign players, giving Egyptian players more chances to participate and develop, and improving the quality of local talent,” he said.

Egyptian Premier League regulations currently allow each club to include five foreign players in its squad for a match.

Egyptian Football Association president Hany Abou Rida previously announced that the association’s board had approved a contract extension for national-team manager Hossam Hassan. Hossam Hassan had also previously expressed his wish to reduce the number of foreign players in the league to give more opportunities to Egyptian and younger players.

The 2026-27 season will feature 20 clubs. The opening phase will be played as a single round-robin competition, with each team meeting the others once.

At the final stage, the clubs will be divided into two groups. Six teams will compete for the title, while the remaining 14 will play to avoid relegation.