The Egypt Handball Federation (EHF) has announced that Xavi Pascual will be the new coach of the men’s senior national team, making him the fourth consecutive Spanish coach to lead the “Pharaohs,” following David Davis, Roberto Garcia Parrondo and Juan Carlos Pastor.

The 57-year-old coach, with vast experience, will be taking charge of a national team for the third time, after leading the Romania men’s national team in two stints—the first between 2016 and 2018, and the second between 2021 and 2024.

Pascual is considered one of the best coaches in the world, having spent 12 years at Barcelona, where he won over 60 trophies, including the EHF Champions League Men three times (2011, 2015, and 2021) and the IHF Men’s Club World Championship five times (2013, 2014, 2017, 2018, and 2019).

He spent three years at Dinamo București, between 2021 and 2024, before moving to Hungarian powerhouse Veszprém HC, where he also won the domestic title and the IHF Men’s Club World Championship in 2024. The team is already qualified for the next event in Egypt, which will take place this autumn.

According to the announcement from the Egypt Handball Federation, Pascual has signed a three-year contract, running until 2028. Egypt’s ambition is to participate in the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games, which would be Pascual’s first edition of the competition as a coach.

“I am very happy, I think it is fantastic that I have been given such an opportunity to lead a national team, and I am sure that this work will benefit both me and the club. I hope that we can work together well and coordinate the work in Veszprém and the Egyptian national team, where I will have a great coaching staff that will help me with my professional work during the season, and I will join them during the national team breaks. I think I can handle this dual situation, we also have some Egyptian players in Veszprém, and I believe that this work will be fruitful for everyone," said Pascual, according to the official website of the IHF Men's Club World Championship title holders, Veszprém HC.

At Veszprém HC, Pascual has four Egyptian players at his disposal, backs Ali Zein, Yehia Elderaa and Ahmed Hesham, as well as line player Ahmed Adel.

Over the last decade, Egypt have been one of the most consistent teams in the world at the senior level, reaching the quarter-finals at the last three editions of the IHF Men’s World Championship and finishing 8th at Denmark/Germany 2019, 7th at Egypt 2021 and Poland/Sweden 2023, and 5th at Croatia/Denmark/Norway 2025.

At the last two editions of the Olympic Games, Egypt finished fourth at Tokyo 2020 and fifth at Paris 2024, missing out on a medal in dramatic fashion in both events, with their loss against Spain in the quarter-finals of the last Olympics leaving Egypt heartbroken.

With a core of experienced stars like Yahia Omar, Yehia Elderaa, Ahmed Hesham, and Mohamed Sanad, as well as a new generation of talent emerging, Egypt is poised to build on its recent successes under Pascual’s guidance. The immediate focus will be on the upcoming international competitions, as Pascual will make his international debut at the 2026 CAHB African Men’s Handball Championship in Rwanda.