Every World Cup comes with its own constellation of soundtracks.
The latest tournament, taking place in the US, Mexico and Canada and set to begin on June 11, may want us to tune into official releases such as Shakira and Burna Boy’s Dai Dai, but the music of the World Cup is richer than that.
Each competing team arrives with its own songs, terrace anthems and chants, drawing on past success, football history and national mythology to bring colour to the tournament.
Here are seven to know from the region.
1. Hina Jeena by Omar Al Abdallat (Jordan)
Jordan’s debut appearance at the tournament is being trailed by this unofficial song, which is shaping up to be a favourite among local supporters.
Released after Jordan’s historic qualification, Hina Jeena, meaning “Here we come”, is a celebratory folk-pop track. The lyrics compare the national team’s fluid play to Barcelona’s dominant “tiki-taka” football philosophy.
2. Achkid by H-Kayne, Muslim, Dizzy Dros and Chaimae Abdelaziz (Morocco)
Moroccan-Swedish producer and Dubai resident RedOne has been writing official and unofficial World Cup anthems for Morocco for more than a decade. Given his track record producing hits for Jennifer Lopez, Enrique Iglesias and others, the country could do far worse than have him on its side.
On Achkid, RedOne (real name Nadir Khayat) does what he does best, bringing together Moroccan hip-hop heavyweights H-Kayne, Muslim and Dizzy Dros with singer Chaimae Abdelaziz for another euphoric football release. The refrains move between flag-waving pride and easy stadium hooks, from “Raise our flag in the world” to “Hala, hala Morocco”.
3. Allah Allah Ya Montakhabna by Talal Salamah (Saudi Arabia)
World Cup anthems can stay evergreen because they trade on past glories. That is the case with this Saudi classic by singer Talal Salamah, which captured the joy of the national team’s first continental title at the 1984 Asian Cup in Singapore.
Commissioned by the football authority in support of the team’s campaign, the song became a mainstay on television as Saudi Arabia progressed through the tournament. Its lyrics blend football action with patriotism, from the chorus “Come on, our national team” to lines such as “Play with skill in the name of the nation”.
4. Aja El Iraq by Mahmoud Al Turki (Iraq)
Released in 2024, near the start of Iraq’s World Cup qualification campaign, Aja El Iraq means “Iraq has arrived” and comes from one of the country’s best-known pop singers.
Mahmoud Al Turki officially dedicated the song to the national side, and the lyrics set the tone from the opening couplet: “Iraq has arrived, bringing its lions.” The line draws on one of the team’s nicknames, Usood Al-Rafidain, the Lions of Mesopotamia.
5. Tiri Tiri by JenJoon
Released last year by Tunisian rapper JenJoon, Tiri Tiri, meaning “Fly, fly,” began as a personal ode of support for the Eagles of Carthage before the national team unofficially adopted it as its own.
According to an interview with footballer Rayan Elloumi on the Canadian radio station RCI, the song has been played in the Tunisian team’s locker room. Its most quoted lyric captures the fighting spirit at the centre of the track: “I am Carthaginian, and by origin I challenge; by origin I am a fighter.”
6. Shagga Masr by Presentation Live (Egypt)
Like Ramadan and Eid campaigns, Egyptian World Cup songs often come through private companies fronting popular singers rather than a single federation anthem.
The title means “Support with your heart, support Egypt”, and the lyrics are all-mobilisation: Egypt, our country, is calling to us; the fans are behind the team; and the refrain interpolates the language of Egyptian national songs.
7. One, Two, Three, Viva l’Algérie by Algeria supporters (Algeria)
One of Algeria’s defining football chants, this mixes English, Spanish and French in one line, with one account tracing it to an Algerian football victory in Oran in 1974. It has remained heard in stadiums across the world since, following the team through World Cup campaigns since their international debut in 1982.
