How FC Masar Transformed the Trajectory of Women's Football in Egypt

In a country where football is often associated with its storied men's national team and their record number of continental titles, not much room has been made for the women's side of the game. It wasn't until recently, in 2024, that the Egyptian Women's Premier League was first televised. That same year, a footballing dynasty began to take shape. Egypt has always produced footballers. The country understands the game intimately That knowledge, that culture, just never fully extended to the women's side of the game. Not because the talent wasn't there. It just didn't have the right home. Then came FC Masar, Egypt’s first purpose-driven football club, which has been operating as part of the Right to Dream global community since 2021.  "Before FC Masar, many female footballers in Egypt may not have fully seen how far their careers could go," said Mariam Hesham, Women's Sporting Director at FC Masar. "Today, they can dream bigger. They have role models who have proven that success on the continental and international stage is possible. More importantly, they can see a pathway for themselves in the game." The club was built around a simple but loaded idea that skilled players can be found in a lot of places, but not everyone has the same opportunity to be discovered.  "Talent is universal, but opportunity is not,” said Mohammed Wasfy, CEO of FC Masar. “Our mission is to close that gap by creating environments where every young person regardless of background or gender, has the chance to dream bigger, achieve more and lead the future." FC Masar runs both men's and women's teams and serves as a direct pathway for graduates of the Right to Dream academy in Egypt and for young Egyptian talent more broadly. From the start, the women's programme was central to that identity. Right to Dream has been doing this kind of work for over two decades. Operating across Ghana, Denmark, Egypt, and the United States, the organisation scouts more than 100,000 young players every year across 180 communities, looking specifically in the places that tend to get overlooked. The model has always been about more than football. "The level of professional football they made accessible for women and girls gave a drive and motivation to develop themselves in the game that wasn't easily available before,” said FC Masar player Mennatullah Amin. She arrived at Right to Dream in 2022 and became the first girl from the academy to score for the first team. She speaks about her journey with a clarity that says more than any statistic could.  "The younger version of myself would remind me how far I've come. She'd be proud of who I've become." What FC Masar gave her, Amin says, went beyond the football itself.  That access to professionalism and to an environment that expected the best from them, changed what felt possible. Players who come through the system get world-class education alongside elite training, developing not just as athletes but as people equipped to lead beyond the game. The trophies are one thing. But Hesham points to runs deeper.  "While FC Masar was key in introducing a more professional approach to women's football in Egypt, I believe its greatest impact goes beyond professionalism. The club showed talented female players what is possible when they are given the right environment, one that truly believes in and is passionate about the women's game.” Words backed by structure. FC Masar built something real, and the results came quickly. Since the 2023–24 season, the women's team has won three consecutive Egyptian Women's Premier League titles, completing the domestic double in each of those campaigns with three successive Egypt Cups. Three seasons, six trophies. A level of consistency that takes genuine investment to build. Then the continent opened up. In their debut at the 2024 CAF Women's Champions League, FC Masar returned with a bronze medal, the first ever won by an Egyptian women's club side.  Goalkeeper Habiba Sabry, 19 years old, was named Best Goalkeeper of the tournament and went on to earn nominations for both CAF and FIFA individual awards. A teenager, in her first continental campaign, writing a piece of history. The Egyptian league is on television now. The medals are real. There are players with names and stories that young girls across Egypt can point to and say that could be me.