Israel won't face Palestine in World Cup qualifiers on 16 November

It is incorrect that Israel and Palestine will play a match in the World Cup qualifying tournament. On November 16, Israel will play against Switzerland while Palestine will play against Lebanon.

Even though Makram Daboub is having trouble getting his Palestinian squad ready for the 2026 World Cup qualifying, he finds some solace in the fact that his players who are stranded in Gaza are safe for the time being.

The manager of the national football team intended to have Ahmed Al-Kayed, Khaled Al-Nabris, and Ibrahim Abuimeir in an academy in Jordan before their World Cup qualifying matches against Australia on November 21 and Lebanon on Thursday.

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After its founding in 1928, the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) became a member of FIFA in 1929. However, as time went on, it turned into a Jewish-only organisation, and in 1948—after the nation-state of Israel was established—it changed its moniker to the Israel Football Union.

Even though Palestine had national teams throughout the ensuing decades, the PFA did not resurrect and Palestine did not become an official member of FIFA until 1998, which occurred a half-century after the Nakba, or “catastrophe” in Arabic, which resulted in thousands of Palestinian deaths and the uprooting of over 750,000 to establish the state of Israel.

Palestinian football has persevered through five Israeli attacks on Gaza, the turmoil of the second Revolution from 2000 to 2005, and growing occupation. The national squad has qualified for three consecutive Asian Cup tournaments.

However, with no end in sight to the most recent war in Gaza, preparing for the commencement of the Asian Cup in January 2024 and the 2026 World Cup qualification in November may prove to be the most difficult task to date.

Football players in Gaza are still facing Israel’s full fury in the interim.

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