Misplaced Pages

Palestine national football team: Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editNext edit →Content deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 11:15, 7 January 2020 view sourceMonkbot (talk | contribs)Bots3,695,952 editsm →External links: Task 15: language icon template(s) replaced (5×);Tag: AWB← Previous edit Revision as of 17:29, 11 January 2020 view source Sakiv (talk | contribs)Autopatrolled, Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers64,503 edits →HistoryTag: use of deprecated (unreliable) sourceNext edit →
Line 76: Line 76:


== History == == History ==
=== Beginning === === 1928–1998: The beginning ===
] leader ] attempted for Maccabi Association's membership in the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) as early as 1925.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.palestine-studies.org/sites/default/files/jq-articles/44_the_coverage_of_sports_2.pdf|title=The Coverage of Sports News in “Filastin” 1911 – 1948|last=Khalidi|first=Issam|date=|website=|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}}</ref> The application was turned down, as only associations representing states could be admitted as members. Yekutieli thus decied to create the ] (PFA). Maccabi officials were obliged to include Arab teams. The association's first session was held in the summer of 1928. Notwithstanding the fourteen Jewish representatives that partook, one Arab delegate participated – an individual representing Arab Sports Club of Jerusalem.<ref>{{cite book |last=Khalidi |first=Issam |title=One Hundred Years of Football in Palestine |publisher=Al Manhal |year=2013 |isbn=9796500159331 |page=25}}</ref> FIFA accepted the PFA on 17 May 1929 and during the first years of the PFA, Arab clubs partook in PFA sanctioned-matches.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://palestine-studies.org/sites/default/files/jq-articles/Sports%20and%20Aspirations%20%20JQ-58-7.pdf|title=Sports and Aspirations: Football in Palestine, 1900–1948}}</ref> At this points, 11 of the 69 PFA teams were Arab, but after the mid-1930s until its transformation into ] it became increasingly Zionist with only minor Arab membership.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hofmann |first=Annette |last2=R. Gems |first2=Gerald |last3=Smith |first3=Maureen |title=Games and Sporting Events in History: Organisations, Performances and Impact |publisher=Routledge |year=2018 |isbn=9781134819935 |page= }}</ref>
Football appeared in Palestine in the beginning of the 20th century. The national team played its first competition in the ] in ], followed by many other appearances in the ] and also in other competitions such as the ] and the ].


An Arab Palestinian Sports Federation (APSF) was born in April 1931 due to the belief that the PFA did not represent Arab interests. A Palestinian national team played its first match against a squad from the ] in the same year according to '']''.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://dspace.library.uu.nl/bitstream/handle/1874/328837/dorsey.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y|title=Soccer: Moulding the Middle East and North Africa|last=James Michael|first=Dorsey|date=2016|work=James Michael Dorsey|access-date=|publisher=Utrecht University Repository|issue= |volume= |page=50}}</ref> Due to the ], the activities of the APSF were hampered and APSF completely disappeared toward the end of the 1930s.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=http://www.hpalestinesports.net/2018/10/palestines-bid-to-join-international_84.html|title=Palestine’s Bid to Join the International Football Association FIFA 1945 - 1998|last=Khalidi|first=Issam|date=21 October 2018|website=History of Palestine Sports|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=23 December 2019}}</ref>
⚫ === International recognition ===
Palestine applied to, and was admitted into FIFA in 1998. They played their first ]es against ], ] and ] in July 1998. The following year, the team, led by Israeli-Arab coach ] took part in the ], in which they won the bronze medal after beating ], ], and the ], while only losing to hosts ].


While the Palestinian Football Association was established in 1928, the first international match played by Palestine was in the ] against ]; the match ended in a 8–1 defeat.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.sportsjoe.ie/football/palestines-87-year-journey-to-the-asian-cup-is-the-most-uplifting-story-youll-read-all-week-8309|title=Palestine's 87-year journey to the Asia Cup is the most uplifting story you'll read all week|website=SportsJOE.ie|language=en|access-date=2019-12-19}}</ref> The last game saw Palestine lose to Libya 5–2, to finish bottom of the group.
Palestine's first attempt to qualify for the ] and the ] were unsuccessful, but saw victories against ] and ].


At the ], Palestine were grouped with ], ], ] and the ]. They finished second, thus advanced to the semi-finals for the first time. Palestine faced ] and were beaten narrowly 2–1. In the third place play-off, Palestine met ], where they lost 4–2.
In 2002, the ] hired Nicola Hadwa Shahwan as manager. Shahwan, who was born in ], grew up in Chile and had many connections among Santiago's Palestinian community, whence he brought ], ], ], ] and the ]-born ] into the squad. These players made their debuts in the ]. The team exited in the group stage but managed draws against group winners ], hosts ], and ], with their only loss coming against eventual semi-finalists ].


Palestine were drawn alongside Libya, North Yemen and Syria in the ]. With one win, a draw and a loss, Palestine was eliminated in the group stage.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rsssf.com/tablesa/arabcup.html#66|title=Arab Cup|website=www.rsssf.com}}</ref>
In 2004, two more Latin Americans joined the Palestinian national team ] and the ]-born ].


The national team participated in the 1976 Pan Arab Games, held in Damascus. Palestine started their campaign with two defeats to Morocco (3–0) and Saudi Arabia (3–1), before defeating Jordan (2–1). They lost to hosts Syria (2–0) in their fourth game of the tournament, drew against South Yemen (0–0), and finished with a win against Mauritania (1–0) to end the tournament in 6th place.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rsssf.com/tablesa/arabgam76.html|title=5th Pan Arab Games, 1976 (Syria)|website=www.rsssf.com|access-date=2019-12-23}}</ref>
After an unsuccessful Asian Cup qualifying campaign, the PFA hired Austrian coach ] to lead the team in the ]s. Palestine were drawn in a group alongside ], ] and ]. In their first match, Palestine recorded an historic 8–0 win against the Taiwanese; two months later a 1–1 draw against Iraq put Palestine in first place in the group.
Palestine were drawn in a group in ] for the 2007 tournament alongside 2004 finalists ], eventual winners ], and ]. Palestine still had a chance of qualifying until the penultimate round, after a 1–0 win against Singapore and a 2–2 draw against Iraq. Palestine was invited to participate in the inaugural ] in Bangladesh, where they beat ] 11–0, ] 4–0 and drew with ] to top their group and reach the quarterfinal, where they were beaten 1–0 by ]. In the summer of 2006, Palestine achieved its highest ever FIFA ranking at 115, placing them 16th in the Asian continent. The team remained without a manager for most of 2007 and preparations for ] were severely lacking. Palestine lost the first leg of a two-legged play-off against ] 0–4 and could not play the return leg as a result of Israeli travel restrictions.


Palestine participated in the 1992 Arab Nations Cup held in Iraq; they were drawn in Group B alongside Syria, Libya and North Yemen. Starting with a 0–0 to Libya, Palestine beat North Yemen 7–0 before losing 3–1 to Syria. They ended the tournament with four points and failed to qualify to the knock-out stages of the competition.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.rsssf.com/tablesa/arabcup.html#66|title=Arab Cup|website=www.rsssf.com|access-date=2019-12-23}}</ref>
In 2008, with the assistance of FIFA's Goal program, ], head of the ] had the ] built, and on 26 October 2008 Palestine held a match on home soil for the first time since becoming a member of FIFA, a 1–1 draw with Jordan in front of a crowd in excess of 7,000.<ref name="autogenerated1">{{cite news| last = Maqbool| first = Aleem| title = 'Palestine' take to field of dreams | work = BBC News| publisher = BBC| date = 27 October 2008| url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/7692735.stm |accessdate =28 October 2008 }}</ref> Palestine received the inaugural ] in recognition of the achievement.<ref name="autogenerated2">{{cite web| title = Palestine scoop Development Prize | work = FIFA.com| publisher = FIFA | date = 12 January 2009| url = https://www.fifa.com/classicfootball/awards/gala/news/newsid=990926.html#palestine+scoop+development+prize |accessdate =12 April 2009 }}</ref>


⚫ === 1998–2014: International recognition ===
Two and a half years later, in March 2011, Palestine played its first ever competitive home game. The game, at the ], was the second leg of a qualifier for the ], against ]. Thailand had won the first leg 1–0 in ]; Palestine won the second 1–0 with a goal by ] in the 43rd minute. The draw on aggregate led to a penalty shootout, where Palestine lost by 5–6.<ref>, BBC, 9 March 2011</ref> However, as Thailand was ordered to forfeit the first match because of fielding an ineligible player,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-afc.com/en/tournaments/men-a-youth/olympic-qualifiers/34675-palestine-to-replace-thailand-in-olympic-qualifiers-second-round|title=Palestine to replace Thailand in Olympic Qualifiers second round|date=4 May 2011|work=the-afc.com|accessdate=22 June 2011}}</ref> Palestine replaced Thailand to play ] next. In the next round against Bahrain, although Palestine won the first leg at ] by 1–0,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-afc.com/en/component/joomleague/?view=report&compID=407&matchId=3895|title=The AFC.com – The Asian Football Confederation|website=www.the-afc.com}}</ref> they lost the return leg by 1–2<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-afc.com/en/component/joomleague/?view=report&compID=407&matchId=3883|title=The AFC.com – The Asian Football Confederation|website=www.the-afc.com}}</ref> and eliminated by ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.the-afc.com/en/tournaments/men-a-youth/olympic-qualifiers/35410-palestine-1-2-bahrain|title=Palestine 1–2 Bahrain (2–2 agg; Bahrain win on away goals)|work=]|date=23 June 2011|accessdate=5 July 2011}}</ref>
In May 1995, the PFA was granted the status of provisional member in FIFA. Palestine eventually gained FIFA membership on 8 June 1998 after numerous attempts since 1946.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.palestine-studies.org/sites/default/files/hq-articles/%D8%B9%D8%B5%D8%A7%D9%85%20%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AF%D9%8A.pdf|title=فلسطين وعضوية الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم (الفيفا)|last=الخالدي|first=عصام|language=Arabic|date=2013|work=عصام الخالدي|access-date=|publisher=]|issue=16|volume= |pages=1–13}}</ref><ref name="auto"/> A month later, Palestine under Ricardo Carugati, participated in the ].


In the next year, Palestine took part in the ] held in Jordan. There, they won games against ] and the ], drew with Libya and ], while only losing to hosts ]. Palestine finished in the third-place which is their best result to date. In their first ever ], Palestine were drawn into a five-team group with Jordan, Kazakhstan, ], and Qatar. A single victory 2–0 against Pakistan proved to be not enough to qualify as they lost 1–0 to Qatar, 5–1 to Jordan before finishing the campaign with a 2–0 defeat to Kazakhstan.
The team beat ] 3–1 on aggregate (2–0 away, 1–1 home) in the ] of ] for the ]. They faced ] in the ], with an away match on 23 July 2011 in ], and a home match on 28 July at Al-Ram. Palestine lost the away leg 1–0, with back-up goalkeeper ] saving a penalty in the dying moments of the match to keep the tie alive. Palestine took a 1–0 lead in the 6th minute of the return leg through a ] goal but conceded 10 minutes before halftime, meaning they would have to win by two clear goals in order to advance. Palestine took a 2–1 lead late in the second half but had a man sent off and conceded a goal whilst desperately searching for a winner. They were eliminated from ] on an aggregate score of 2–3, if the ] elects to keep the same qualifying format for the ] they will be ranked 21st and receive a 1st round bye.


Managed by Mustafa Yacoub, Palestine drew into Group C of the ] along with ], ] and Qatar. The team finished in a good second place scoring 8 goals thanks to Emad Ayoub who netted four times. In the ], Palestine crashed out of the group stage, but managed to draw against group winners Jordan, Kuwait and Sudan, whose only losses were against eventual semifinalist ]. Under Nicola Hadwa Shahwan, the team were drawn alongside Kuwait, Qatar and Singapore. Palestine finished last with two points.
The PFA elected not to renew Moussa Bezaz's contract after the team failed to advance to the ] of ]. Former ] player and manager ] was announced as the national team manager in November 2011 after two disastrous friendlies without a permanent manager saw the team lose 4–1 and 7–0 to ] and ], respectively. His first official match was a friendly against ] in ] which Palestine won 1–0 courtesy of ]'s first international goal. Palestine lost its first game at the ] to Jordan but recovered well in their following group games. Earning a well-deserved 1–1 draw and a 2–0 win over ] finalists Libya and Sudan to advance to the semifinals of the competition. The team eventually exited the competition against eventual champions Bahrain under dubious circumstances when the Bahrainis were awarded a phantom goal in the second half to make the score 3–1.

After a failed Asian Cup qualifying campaign, the PFA hired Austrian coach Alfred Reidel to lead the team to the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification. Palestine was included in a group with Uzbekistan, Iraq and Chinese Taipei. They won both games against Chinese Taipei, drew 2–2 with Iraq, however this was insufficient for Palestine to advance beyond the second round as they lost both fixtures versus Uzbekistan 3–0 apart from a 3–0 defeat at the hands of Iraq. Palestine took part in the ] held in Bangladesh. They were drawn alongside the host team, ] and ]. In the group stage, Palestine registered their biggest win ever, a 11–0 victory over Guam. Palestine advanced from ] and met ] in the quarter-finals. After playing a goaless first half, they were beaten with a last-gasp goal. In the summer of 2006, Palestine achieved its highest FIFA ranking at 115, placing them 16th in the Asian continent.{{cn}}

Managed by ], Palestine were drawn with ], Iraq and Singapore during the ]. Palestine finished in the bottom with 4 points. They achieved their only win against Singapore 1–0.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wafa.ps/print.aspx?id=eXwLosa72354166566aeXwLos&__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=47daae6fdd6ff78b57de3d26d83fb36c1cc09af4-1578329476-0-AXBdF3izOpTTz-TjkBdTfYYLjfaF-TgRgLj9e13vYvrdIRcXiYjDBQRM5dxlefnnGwteRqGB4-cfuV-rJ8M0am-Z-Lo3NE7iFiCEr-vE917boIG5s8S9if6V75wTnz2DF8Zg3CHmc3ACkY1iwDVoMny7Uc3XEelr6-VKnlLVTPeU0P688KuAYux-x3RwiT5kjeyvyCjcue8n_Gz69o568I2L6n2IKbW9qrUt5dVWLQuWruvEFBBvWbgW0MEg5qV2n1akfbFYe3DPMRCut9FGreeCUJANPJny8sdB2YdwKTJ5rTsHZpdx_9sB_FyjWIZkiw|title=المنتخب الوطني الأول لكرة القدم يحقق فوزاً غالياً على سنغافورة في التصفيات المؤهلة لكأس آسيا 2007|work=]|language=Ar|date=1 March 2006|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref>

In 2008, with the help of FIFA's goal program, the PFA built the ], and on 26 October 2008. Palestine held a match at their home for the first time since they became member of FIFA, a 1–1 draw with Jordan ahead of a crowd of over 7,000.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.gerasanews.com/article/2022|title=منتخبا الأردن وفلسطين يجسدان الوفاء للقدس .. بالتعادل|website=وكالة جراسا الاخبارية|date=28 October 2008|accessdate=6 January 2020|language=Ar}}</ref> Palestine entered the ] of ] and were eliminated after only one match that finished 4–0 for Singapore. The second leg was not playet as scheduled due to the Palestinian team being barred from travelling.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.straitstimes.com/sport/football/football-finds-a-way-even-in-fractured-palestine-0|title=Football finds a way, even in fractured Palestine|date=10 September 2019|website=The Straits Times}}</ref> However the FIFA refused to reschedule the match.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thestar.com.my/sport/other-sport/2007/10/31/palestine-blame-israel-want-to-reschedule-singapore-match|title=Palestine blame Israel, want to re-schedule Singapore match|date=31 October 2007|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=The Star Online}}</ref>

The ] draw put Palestine in Group C, with Afghanistan (later withdrew), Kyrgyzstan and Nepal. They started the run with a goalless draw against hosts Nepal.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.footballdatabase.eu/en/match/summary/1111336-nepal-palestine|title=Nepal  0-0 Palestine  / AFC Challenge Cup Qualifying 2010|website=www.footballdatabase.eu}}</ref> The final game finished in a 1–1 draw with Kyrgyzstan to miss the chance of qualification on goal difference.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.soccerway.com/matches/2009/03/30/asia/afc-challenge-cup/kyrgyzstan/palestine/754071/|title=Kyrgyz Republic vs. Palestine - 30 March 2009 - Soccerway|website=www.soccerway.com}}</ref>

Palestine drew into group C with Jordan, Libya and Sudan for the ]. They lost the opening match 4–1 to Jordan in ]. The team imroved in the second match against Libya which finished 1–1. The last game against Sudan was won by Palestine 2–0 to clinch the second-place berth in the tournament.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.maannews.net/Content.aspx?ID=446375|title=موقع الاتحاد الاسيوي : نتائج مميزة لفلسطين قبل كأس التحدي|website=وكالــة معــا الاخبارية|language=Ar|date=19 December 2011|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> At the semi-finals they lost 3–1 to Bahrain. The team completed their campaign with a 3–0 loss to Kuwait after extra time.

During the ], Palestine were drawn with ] in the ]. The first leg was won 2–0,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rferl.org/a/afghanistan_palestine_tajikistan_world_cup_qualifier_soccer_football/24250695.html|title=Afghan Football Team Loses World Cup Qualifier In Tajikistan|website=RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty|date=29 June 2011|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> while the second leg ended in a draw 1–1.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=257783/match=300159161/photos/index.html|title=2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ - Matches - Palestine-Afghanistan|website=FIFA.com}}</ref> On 3 July 2011, the first World Cup qualifying match played at home, Palestine took the lead with a long-range shot by ]. Palestine reached the ] to face ]. The first match was lost 1–0 in ], while in the second match, Palestine produced a better performance with ] taking the lead early, before Thailand responded before half-time. The second half was similar and two teams waited until the dying minutes before scoring back-to-back goals. This resulted in Palestine's elimination.

The PFA chose not to renew ]'s contract after exiting the second round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Jamal Mahmoud, a former player and manager of ], was announced as the national team manager in November 2011, after two disastrous friendly matches, without a permanent manager saw defeats against ] and Iran 4–1 and 7–0, respectively. Palestine made history by playing and defeating their first ] rival ], on 2–0.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://news.milli.az/sport/100014.html|title=Azərbaycan - Fələstin oyunu bitdi - FOTO - YENİLƏNİB|date=29 February 2012|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=Milli.Az|language=Az}}</ref> The match was later registered as unofficial for uknown reasons.

Mahmoud later led the team in the ]. In the run-up, Palestine finished group play at the ] without conceding a goal after 2–0 wins over Nepal and ] alongside a 0–0 draw against ] on the way to a semifinal exit at the hands of eventual champions North Korea. The third place play-off ended in a 4–3 loss against the Philippines. During the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification, Palestine drew into Group D with Bangladesh, Nepal and the ]. They started with a hard win against Bangladesh 1–0. The next game ended in a 9–0 rout over the Northern Mariana Islands. The qualifiers finished in a goalless draw against Nepal to earn a second straight AFC Challenge Cup berth.

=== 2014–present: Recent success ===
{{football squad on pitch|align=right {{football squad on pitch|align=right
| GK = ] | GK = ]
Line 110: Line 127:
| RCF = ] | RCF = ]
| LCF = ] | LCF = ]
| caption = ] Final starting lineup on 30 May 2014, in ] (]). | caption = Palestine's starting line-up against the ] at the ] Final
}} }}
The team ended up winning the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup by drawing only one of the 5 matches without conceding a goal. In the opening match, Palestine won against Kyrgyzstan with a last-gasp goal by ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://akipress.com/news:541598|title=AFC Challenge Cup: Palestine 1-0 Kyrgyzstan|website=akipress.com|date=20 May 2014|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> In the next group game, they played against Myanmar and won 2–0.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.soccerway.com/matches/2014/05/21/asia/afc-challenge-cup/myanmar/palestine/1649075/|title=Myanmar vs. Palestine - 21 May 2014 - Soccerway|website=www.soccerway.com|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> The ended the first round with a 0–0 draw against hosts Maldives.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://globalsportsarchive.com/match/soccer/2014-05-23/maldives-vs-palestine/405483/|title=Match Report of Maldives vs Palestine - 2014-05-23 - AFC Challenge Cup - Global Sports Archive|website=globalsportsarchive.com|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> Palestine advanced as group winners to the semi-finals where they faced Afghanistan. The match ended in favor of the Palestinians with a 2–0 win.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.thenational.ae/sport/palestine-get-past-afghanistan-and-advance-to-afc-challenge-cup-final-1.242437|title=Palestine get past Afghanistan and advance to AFC Challenge Cup final|website=]|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> At the final, Palestine clinched the win over the Philippines with a lone goal scored by ] through a free-kick.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mondoweiss.net/2014/05/football-provides-palestine/|title=Historic football victory provides another global stage for Palestine|date=31 May 2014|website=Mondoweiss}}</ref> The victory gave the Palestine team their first major trophy and guaranteed their participation in the next year's ]. Following its 2014 AFC Challenge Cup win and qualification for the Asian Cup, ] resigned as national team manager citing irrelevant differences with the Palestine Football Association.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.alquds.co.uk/مدرب-فلسطين-يستقيل-في-خضم-الاستعدادات/|title=مدرب فلسطين يستقيل في خضم الاستعدادات لكأس آسيا!|work=]|date=11 September 2014|accessdate=6 January 2020|language=Ar}}</ref>
Mahmoud led the team three months later at the ]. In the run up to the competition, Palestine made history by playing and defeating its first ] opponent, ], 2–0. Preparation for the competition was less than ideal with ], ], ], ], ], and ] unavailable due to club commitments and having ], ], ], ], ] and ] out with injury. Palestine finished group play at the ] without conceding a goal after 2–0 wins over ] and ] along with a 0–0 draw against ] en route to a semifinal exit at the hands of eventual champions ].


Palestine was placed in ] along with ], Jordan and Iraq in the ] having lost all three group matches. They started their campaign with a 0–4 defeat by Japan.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bbc.com/sport/football/30775510|title=Palestine lose 4-0 to Japan in first Asian Cup match|via=www.bbc.com|date=12 January 2015|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref> In the second game Palestine were beaten 1–5, with the opposing team ending the first half with a 3 goals lead. In the second half, Palestine scored their first ever Asian Cup goal by ] six minutes before the end. However, at this point they were eliminated.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2913171/Palestine-1-5-Jordan-Ray-Wilkins-Asian-Cup-hopes-alive-dominating-performance-Melbourne.html|title=Palestine 1-5 Jordan: Ray Wilkins' side keep Asian Cup hopes alive|first=Neil|last=Frankland|date=16 January 2015|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=Mail Online}}</ref>. The participation ended with a 0–2 defeat to Iraq.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.espn.com/soccer/name/0/blog/post/2254315/headline|title=Below-par Iraq book Iran QF|date=20 January 2015|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=ESPN.com}}</ref> After a disastrous performance in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, the PFA appointed Olympic team manager ] as national team manager, who then decided not to pick several veteran players as the team moved to overhaul.
Palestine won their first ] match in 2012, defeating ] 1–0 in Kuwait City.


Palestine registered two famous 6–0 wins over Malaysia during 2018 World Cup qualifying. Those results, combined with a 0–0 draw at home to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, placed Palestine within the quest for qualification for the third-round of Asian World Cup qualifiers. They were eliminated from the qualification following a 2–0 defeat to the UAE on 24 March 2016. They won their final FIFA World Cup qualification match at home 7–0 against ], five days later.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.palinfo.com/news/2016/3/29/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%85%D9%86%D8%AA%D8%AE%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%81%D9%84%D8%B3%D8%B7%D9%8A%D9%86%D9%8A-%D9%8A%D9%82%D8%B3%D9%88-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%89-%D8%AA%D9%8A%D9%85%D9%88%D8%B1-%D8%A8%D8%B3%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B9%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D9%86%D8%B8%D9%8A%D9%81%D8%A9|title=المنتخب الفلسطيني يقسو على تيمور بسباعية نظيفة - المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام|website=www.palinfo.com|date=29 March 2016|accessdate=6 January 2020}}</ref>
In 2013, they secured a second straight ] berth, qualifying for the ] edition by topping Group D with 7 points, ahead of ], ], and the ]. The team ended up winning the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup without conceding a goal and drawing just one out of five games. The win brought the Palestine team their first major trophy and assured them of participation in the ], also their first ever. In the run-up to qualifying they scored 16 goals, won six games and drew twice, while putting together eight straight clean sheets. ] was crowned top scorer of the finals tournament having scored the winning goal in the final against ] and three additional goals in the runner up. Midfielder ] was recognized as the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.


Shortly following their ] triumph and qualification ] qualification, Jamal Mahmoud resigned as national team manager citing irreconcilable differences with the Palestine Football Association. Jamal Mahmoud left the post as the most successful manager in national team history by a number of metrics. He led the team to an all-time high rank of 85 in the FIFA Rankings, won 14 of his 34 games, registered a 41% win percentage and a points-per-game rate of 1.41.


] (''right'') against Syria at the ]|alt=|left]]
Palestine were placed in Group D at the ] alongside ], ] and ] which lost all three group matches. They were defeated 0–4 by Japan, lost 1–5 to Jordan and finished their campaign with a 0–2 loss to Iraq.


On 19 December 2017, ] was hired after Abdel Nasser Barakat was released.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.alarabiya.net/ar/sport/arab-sport/2017/12/19/البوليفي-خوليو-سيزار-يتولى-تدريب-منتخب-فلسطين.html|title=البوليفي خوليو سيزار يتولى تدريب منتخب فلسطين|date=19 December 2017|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=]|language=Ar}}</ref> The hiring was widely critisized by Palestinian fans.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ultrapal.ultrasawt.com/%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%81%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%A6%D9%8A-%D8%A8%D9%82%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%AF%D8%A9-%D8%B3%D9%8A%D8%B2%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%84%D9%84%D8%AE%D9%84%D9%81-%D8%B3%D9%90%D8%B1/%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B9%D8%AF%D9%85/%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%B6%D8%A9/%D9%85%D9%86%D9%88%D8%B9%D8%A7%D8%AA|title="الفدائي" بقيادة سيزار.. للخلف سِر|website=الترا فلسطين|date=28 March 2018|accessdate=6 January 2020|language=Ar}}</ref> On 22 April 2018, the PFA appointed ] as head coach to lead the team in the next period. Palestine was crowned champion of the ] as an invited country to the tournament. In the road to the final, they topped their group with 6 points, defeating ] 2–0 before winning against Nepal 1–0 with a ] header.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://thehimalayantimes.com/sports/nepal-out/|title=Nepal out|date=7 October 2018|website=The Himalayan Times}}</ref> In the semi-final Palestine knocked out Bangladesh 2–0 with the goals coming in each half. At the final, Palestine played Tajikistan for the second time. The match ended 0–0 in regular time, to be decided in a penalty shoot-out which Palestine won 4–3.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dhakatribune.com/sport/football/2018/10/12/plucky-palestine-clinch-bangabandhu-gold-cup|title=Plucky Palestine clinch Bangabandhu Gold Cup|date=12 October 2018|website=Dhaka Tribune}}</ref>
Following the disastrous showing at the ] the PFA appointed Olympic Team manager Abdel-Nasser Barakat as national team manager who moved to overhaul the squad choosing not to call up ], ], ], ], ], and ] all of whom had been part of the national team at the last Asian Cup Finals. Barakat led a search for a number of players eligible to represent Palestine in South America and Europe. In his first game in charge debutants ] and ] scored in a narrow 3–2 loss to Saudi Arabia in ].


Palestine registered a pair of famous 6–0 wins over ] during the course of World Cup qualifying. Those results combined with valiant 0–0 draws at home to Saudi Arabia and UAE kept Palestine in the hunt for qualification to the Third Round of Asian World Cup qualification until the penultimate match day. They were eliminated from ] following a 2–0 loss away to UAE on 24 March 2016. They won their final ] match at home five days later 7–0. This game marked the debuts of ] and ] with the national team. It also marked the first time Palestine won a game on home soil since readmission to ] following draws against Jordan, Afghanistan, Thailand, and UAE.


Palestine were drawn with Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Uzbekistan, Yemen at the ]. They kicked-off with a historic win over Uzbekistan 2–0 in ].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.elbayan-news.com/1568081|title=شاهد&#124; مفاجأة تصفيات آسيا لكأس العالم 2022.. فلسطين تفوز على أوزبكستان وكوبر|date=5 September 2019|website=البيان نيوز|language=Ar}}</ref> Five days later, Palestine were defeated 2–1 to Singapore.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ar.haberler.com/arabic-news-1370352/?utm_source=facebook&utm_campaign=tavsiye_et|title=قدم: فلسطين تخسر من سنغافورة بتصفيات مونديال 2022|date=10 September 2019|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=Haberler.com|language=Ar}}</ref> On 15 October 2019, Palestine drew 0–0 with Saudi Arabia, during which its decades-long boycott of play in the West Bank came to an end in protest against Israel's control over Palestinian territories.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://apnews.com/b8e4851859504a94aa2c42d8fb86d6e9|title=Palestinians, Saudis play to draw in historic match|date=15 October 2019|accessdate=24 December 2019|website=AP NEWS}}</ref> Thereafter, the team lost again to Yemen 1–0.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://snd.ps/post/15465/فلسطين-تخسر-أمام-اليمن-فى-التصفيات-الآسيوية|title=فلسطين تخسر أمام اليمن فى التصفيات الآسيوية|date=14 November 2019|accessdate=6 January 2020|website=وكالة سند للأنباء|language=Ar}}</ref>
On 15 October 2019, Palestine drew 0–0 with ], in which the latter ended their decades-long boycott of playing in the West Bank in protest of Israel's control over Palestinian territories.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/saudi-arabia-breaks-its-decades-long-boycott-to-play-soccer-in-the-west-bank/2019/10/14/9cd78ca0-eea2-11e9-bb7e-d2026ee0c199_story.html|title=Some boo Saudi, Palestinian soccer match in West Bank even before it starts|website=The Washington Post|date=15 October 2019}}</ref>


==Problems relating to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict== ==Problems relating to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict==

Revision as of 17:29, 11 January 2020

National association football team of Palestine This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Palestine women's national football team.

Palestine
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)أسود كنعان (Lions of Canaan)
الفدائيون (The Fedayeen)
الفرسان (The Knights)
AssociationPalestinian Football Association
(الاتحاد الفلسطيني لكرة القدم‎)
ConfederationAFC (Asia)
Sub-confederationWAFF (West Asia)
Head coachNoureddine Ould Ali
CaptainAbdelatif Bahdari
Most capsAbdelatif Bahdari (74)
Top scorerFahed Attal (16)
Home stadiumFaisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
FIFA codePLE
First colours Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 101 Steady (19 December 2024)
Highest73 (February – March 2018)
Lowest191 (April – August 1999)
First international
 Egypt 8–1 Palestine 
(Alexandria, Egypt; 26 July 1953)
Biggest win
 Palestine 11–0 Guam 
(Dhaka, Bangladesh; 1 April 2006)
Biggest defeat
 Egypt 8–1 Palestine 
(Alexandria, Egypt; 26 July 1953)
 Iran 7–0 Palestine 
(Tehran, Iran; 5 October 2011)
AFC Asian Cup
Appearances2 (first in 2015)
Best resultGroup stage (2015, 2019)
AFC Challenge Cup
Appearances3 (first in 2006)
Best resultChampions (2014)
WAFF Championship
Appearances7 (first in 2000)
Best resultGroup stage (7 times)
Medal record
Men's football
AFC Challenge Cup
Gold medal – first place 2014 Maldives
Pan Arab Games
Bronze medal – third place 1999 Amman

The Palestine national football team (Template:Lang-ar), controlled by the Palestinian Football Association, represents Palestine in association football. The squad is governed by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) continentally, and FIFA worldwide. While Palestine is yet to qualify for the World Cup, they have participated twice in the Asian Cup: in 2015, after winning the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup, and 2019, their first time through regular qualification. They failed to get past the group stages on both occasions. Palestine's main venue is the Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium in Al-Ram, however they have been forced to play in neutral stadiums for home matches in numerous occasions due to political issues.

A football federation in Mandatory Palestine was founded in 1928, although this was primarily the team of the Jewish residents. While a team for the Arab residents of Palestine played its first match in 1953, the national team was recognized by FIFA in 1998, after the creation of the Palestinian National Authority. The same year, Palestine played their first FIFA-recognized match in a 3–1 defeat to Lebanon in a friendly. The team has won the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup, thanks to a 1–0 win over the Philippines in the final. Their win in the competition qualified them to the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, marking their first appearance in the competition. Palestine also qualified to the following edition of the Asian Cup, their first through regular qualification.

The Palestinian team is known by various nicknames: "Lions of Canaan" (Template:Lang-ar), "the Fedayeen" (Template:Lang-ar) and "the Knights" (Template:Lang-ar). Their main colours are red and white. The team reached an all-time high position of 73rd in the FIFA ranking in February 2018 after going on a 11-match unbeaten streak, from 29 March 2016 to 22 March 2018.

History

1928–1998: The beginning

Maccabi leader Yosef Yekutieli attempted for Maccabi Association's membership in the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) as early as 1925. The application was turned down, as only associations representing states could be admitted as members. Yekutieli thus decied to create the Palestine Football Association (PFA). Maccabi officials were obliged to include Arab teams. The association's first session was held in the summer of 1928. Notwithstanding the fourteen Jewish representatives that partook, one Arab delegate participated – an individual representing Arab Sports Club of Jerusalem. FIFA accepted the PFA on 17 May 1929 and during the first years of the PFA, Arab clubs partook in PFA sanctioned-matches. At this points, 11 of the 69 PFA teams were Arab, but after the mid-1930s until its transformation into IFA it became increasingly Zionist with only minor Arab membership.

An Arab Palestinian Sports Federation (APSF) was born in April 1931 due to the belief that the PFA did not represent Arab interests. A Palestinian national team played its first match against a squad from the American University of Beirut in the same year according to Falastin. Due to the 1936 revolt, the activities of the APSF were hampered and APSF completely disappeared toward the end of the 1930s.

While the Palestinian Football Association was established in 1928, the first international match played by Palestine was in the 1953 Pan Arab Games against Egypt; the match ended in a 8–1 defeat. The last game saw Palestine lose to Libya 5–2, to finish bottom of the group.

At the 1965 Pan Arab Games, Palestine were grouped with Aden, Iraq, Lebanon and the United Arab Republic. They finished second, thus advanced to the semi-finals for the first time. Palestine faced Sudan and were beaten narrowly 2–1. In the third place play-off, Palestine met Libya, where they lost 4–2.

Palestine were drawn alongside Libya, North Yemen and Syria in the 1966 Arab Nations Cup. With one win, a draw and a loss, Palestine was eliminated in the group stage.

The national team participated in the 1976 Pan Arab Games, held in Damascus. Palestine started their campaign with two defeats to Morocco (3–0) and Saudi Arabia (3–1), before defeating Jordan (2–1). They lost to hosts Syria (2–0) in their fourth game of the tournament, drew against South Yemen (0–0), and finished with a win against Mauritania (1–0) to end the tournament in 6th place.

Palestine participated in the 1992 Arab Nations Cup held in Iraq; they were drawn in Group B alongside Syria, Libya and North Yemen. Starting with a 0–0 to Libya, Palestine beat North Yemen 7–0 before losing 3–1 to Syria. They ended the tournament with four points and failed to qualify to the knock-out stages of the competition.

1998–2014: International recognition

In May 1995, the PFA was granted the status of provisional member in FIFA. Palestine eventually gained FIFA membership on 8 June 1998 after numerous attempts since 1946. A month later, Palestine under Ricardo Carugati, participated in the 1998 Arab Nations Cup qualification.

In the next year, Palestine took part in the 1999 Pan Arab Games held in Jordan. There, they won games against Qatar and the United Arab Emirates, drew with Libya and Syria, while only losing to hosts Jordan. Palestine finished in the third-place which is their best result to date. In their first ever Asian Cup qualification, Palestine were drawn into a five-team group with Jordan, Kazakhstan, Pakistan, and Qatar. A single victory 2–0 against Pakistan proved to be not enough to qualify as they lost 1–0 to Qatar, 5–1 to Jordan before finishing the campaign with a 2–0 defeat to Kazakhstan.

Managed by Mustafa Yacoub, Palestine drew into Group C of the 2002 World Cup qualification along with Hong Kong, Malaysia and Qatar. The team finished in a good second place scoring 8 goals thanks to Emad Ayoub who netted four times. In the 2002 Arab Nations Cup, Palestine crashed out of the group stage, but managed to draw against group winners Jordan, Kuwait and Sudan, whose only losses were against eventual semifinalist Morocco. Under Nicola Hadwa Shahwan, the team were drawn alongside Kuwait, Qatar and Singapore. Palestine finished last with two points.

After a failed Asian Cup qualifying campaign, the PFA hired Austrian coach Alfred Reidel to lead the team to the 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification. Palestine was included in a group with Uzbekistan, Iraq and Chinese Taipei. They won both games against Chinese Taipei, drew 2–2 with Iraq, however this was insufficient for Palestine to advance beyond the second round as they lost both fixtures versus Uzbekistan 3–0 apart from a 3–0 defeat at the hands of Iraq. Palestine took part in the inaugural AFC Challenge Cup held in Bangladesh. They were drawn alongside the host team, Cambodia and Guam. In the group stage, Palestine registered their biggest win ever, a 11–0 victory over Guam. Palestine advanced from Group C and met Kyrgyzstan in the quarter-finals. After playing a goaless first half, they were beaten with a last-gasp goal. In the summer of 2006, Palestine achieved its highest FIFA ranking at 115, placing them 16th in the Asian continent.

Managed by Azmi Nassar, Palestine were drawn with China national football team, Iraq and Singapore during the 2007 Asian Cup qualification. Palestine finished in the bottom with 4 points. They achieved their only win against Singapore 1–0.

In 2008, with the help of FIFA's goal program, the PFA built the Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium, and on 26 October 2008. Palestine held a match at their home for the first time since they became member of FIFA, a 1–1 draw with Jordan ahead of a crowd of over 7,000. Palestine entered the first round of 2010 World Cup qualification and were eliminated after only one match that finished 4–0 for Singapore. The second leg was not playet as scheduled due to the Palestinian team being barred from travelling. However the FIFA refused to reschedule the match.

The 2010 AFC Challenge Cup qualifying draw put Palestine in Group C, with Afghanistan (later withdrew), Kyrgyzstan and Nepal. They started the run with a goalless draw against hosts Nepal. The final game finished in a 1–1 draw with Kyrgyzstan to miss the chance of qualification on goal difference.

Palestine drew into group C with Jordan, Libya and Sudan for the 2011 Pan Arab Games. They lost the opening match 4–1 to Jordan in Doha. The team imroved in the second match against Libya which finished 1–1. The last game against Sudan was won by Palestine 2–0 to clinch the second-place berth in the tournament. At the semi-finals they lost 3–1 to Bahrain. The team completed their campaign with a 3–0 loss to Kuwait after extra time.

During the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers, Palestine were drawn with Afghanistan in the first round. The first leg was won 2–0, while the second leg ended in a draw 1–1. On 3 July 2011, the first World Cup qualifying match played at home, Palestine took the lead with a long-range shot by Houssam Wadi. Palestine reached the second round to face Thailand. The first match was lost 1–0 in Buriram, while in the second match, Palestine produced a better performance with Murad Alyan taking the lead early, before Thailand responded before half-time. The second half was similar and two teams waited until the dying minutes before scoring back-to-back goals. This resulted in Palestine's elimination.

The PFA chose not to renew Moussa Bezaz's contract after exiting the second round of the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifying. Jamal Mahmoud, a former player and manager of Al-Wehdat, was announced as the national team manager in November 2011, after two disastrous friendly matches, without a permanent manager saw defeats against Indonesia and Iran 4–1 and 7–0, respectively. Palestine made history by playing and defeating their first UEFA rival Azerbaijan, on 2–0. The match was later registered as unofficial for uknown reasons.

Mahmoud later led the team in the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup. In the run-up, Palestine finished group play at the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup without conceding a goal after 2–0 wins over Nepal and Maldives alongside a 0–0 draw against Turkmenistan on the way to a semifinal exit at the hands of eventual champions North Korea. The third place play-off ended in a 4–3 loss against the Philippines. During the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualification, Palestine drew into Group D with Bangladesh, Nepal and the Northern Mariana Islands. They started with a hard win against Bangladesh 1–0. The next game ended in a 9–0 rout over the Northern Mariana Islands. The qualifiers finished in a goalless draw against Nepal to earn a second straight AFC Challenge Cup berth.

2014–present: Recent success

Saleh (C) Bahdari Dheeb Fares Jaber Ismail K. Yousef Musa Zatara Abuhabib A. Nu'man Palestine's starting line-up against the Philippines at the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup Final

The team ended up winning the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup by drawing only one of the 5 matches without conceding a goal. In the opening match, Palestine won against Kyrgyzstan with a last-gasp goal by Abdelhamid Abuhabib. In the next group game, they played against Myanmar and won 2–0. The ended the first round with a 0–0 draw against hosts Maldives. Palestine advanced as group winners to the semi-finals where they faced Afghanistan. The match ended in favor of the Palestinians with a 2–0 win. At the final, Palestine clinched the win over the Philippines with a lone goal scored by Ashraf Nu'man through a free-kick. The victory gave the Palestine team their first major trophy and guaranteed their participation in the next year's AFC Asian Cup. Following its 2014 AFC Challenge Cup win and qualification for the Asian Cup, Jamal Mahmoud resigned as national team manager citing irrelevant differences with the Palestine Football Association.

Palestine was placed in Group D along with Japan, Jordan and Iraq in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup having lost all three group matches. They started their campaign with a 0–4 defeat by Japan. In the second game Palestine were beaten 1–5, with the opposing team ending the first half with a 3 goals lead. In the second half, Palestine scored their first ever Asian Cup goal by Jaka Ihbeisheh six minutes before the end. However, at this point they were eliminated.. The participation ended with a 0–2 defeat to Iraq. After a disastrous performance in the 2015 AFC Asian Cup, the PFA appointed Olympic team manager Abdel Nasser Barakat as national team manager, who then decided not to pick several veteran players as the team moved to overhaul.

Palestine registered two famous 6–0 wins over Malaysia during 2018 World Cup qualifying. Those results, combined with a 0–0 draw at home to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, placed Palestine within the quest for qualification for the third-round of Asian World Cup qualifiers. They were eliminated from the qualification following a 2–0 defeat to the UAE on 24 March 2016. They won their final FIFA World Cup qualification match at home 7–0 against Timor-Leste, five days later.

Palestinian defender Abdullah Jaber (right) against Syria at the 2019 Asian Cup

On 19 December 2017, Julio César Baldivieso was hired after Abdel Nasser Barakat was released. The hiring was widely critisized by Palestinian fans. On 22 April 2018, the PFA appointed Noureddine Ould Ali as head coach to lead the team in the next period. Palestine was crowned champion of the 2018 Bangabandhu Cup as an invited country to the tournament. In the road to the final, they topped their group with 6 points, defeating Tajikistan 2–0 before winning against Nepal 1–0 with a Khaled Salem header. In the semi-final Palestine knocked out Bangladesh 2–0 with the goals coming in each half. At the final, Palestine played Tajikistan for the second time. The match ended 0–0 in regular time, to be decided in a penalty shoot-out which Palestine won 4–3.

Palestine were drawn with Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Uzbekistan, Yemen at the 2022 World Cup qualification. They kicked-off with a historic win over Uzbekistan 2–0 in Al-Ram. Five days later, Palestine were defeated 2–1 to Singapore. On 15 October 2019, Palestine drew 0–0 with Saudi Arabia, during which its decades-long boycott of play in the West Bank came to an end in protest against Israel's control over Palestinian territories. Thereafter, the team lost again to Yemen 1–0.

Problems relating to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict

The Palestinian Football Federation faces problems in training and playing due to the Israel-Palestinian conflict.

Because of travel restrictions placed by Israel upon people in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and the difficulty in obtaining an exit visa from Israel, many players in the team are drawn from the Palestinian diaspora, from as far away as Chile and the United States. Recently, Israel's refusal to issue exit visas has resulted in players, or in some case the entire team, being unable to represent the territories. In November 2006 (the last match of 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualification group stage is scheduled), all players based inside the West Bank and Gaza Strip were denied exit visas. The AFC cancelled the match since both teams had been eliminated from the competition by virtue of their previous results against China and Iraq. A film, Goal Dreams, was made about the team attempting to overcome obstacles in the qualification for the 2006 World Cup, who were also featured on the BBC documentary series Frontline Football.

In October 2007, the second leg of a crucial 2010 World Cup qualifier between Palestine and Singapore was not played due to Palestine's inability to obtain exit visas. The AFC and FIFA decided not to reschedule the match despite protests from the PFA, and Singapore was awarded a 3–0 win in a walkover match. In May 2008, the team was not allowed to travel to the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup. After a 2011 World Cup qualifier against Thailand, two starters, Mohammed Samara and Majed Abusidu, were refused entry to the West Bank and therefore could not travel back with the team from Thailand.

Striker Ziyad Al-Kord was banned from traveling and had his house destroyed. Tariq al Quto was killed by the Israel Defense Forces, and during the Operation Cast Lead three Palestinian footballers, Ayman Alkurd, Shadi Sbakhe and Wajeh Moshtahe, were among the Palestinian casualties.

Mahmoud Sarsak was administratively detained by Israel in July 2009 for being a member of Islamic Jihad; following a hunger strike and international pressure on his behalf from FIFA President Sepp Blatter, he was released in July 2012. In 2012, Olympic Team goalkeeper Omar Abu Ruways was arrested by Israel for being a member of a terrorist cell.

Sameh Maraaba was arrested in April after returning with his team from training in Qatar. The Shin Bet accused Maraaba of exploiting his status as a Palestinian football player to act as a courier for Hamas. Shin Bet released a statement in which it was contended that Maraaba admitted that, before he left for Qatar, he met a senior Hamas operative in Kalkilya, asked him to meet an operative from Hamas' military wing in Qatar and received money, a cellphone and written messages which he brought back to Hamas operatives in Kalkilya.

Palestinian facilities, such as Palestine Stadium, have been damaged in military conflicts.

The team's former goalkeeper Abu Rwayyis was arrested in connection with an attack on IDF soldiers in April 2012.

Players

Current squad

The following 28 players were called up for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifying matches against Yemen and Uzbekistan on 14 and 19 November 2019, respectively.
Caps, goals and player numbers are correct as of 15 October 2019 after the match against Saudi Arabia.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Toufic Ali (1990-11-08) 8 November 1990 (age 34) 33 0 Palestine Markaz Balata
16 1GK Naim Abu Aker (1995-01-20) 20 January 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel
22 1GK Rami Hamadeh (1994-03-24) 24 March 1994 (age 30) 27 0 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
1GK Amr Kaddoura (1994-07-01) 1 July 1994 (age 30) 0 0 Sweden Landskrona BoIS
2 2DF Ahmed Qatmish (1998-03-10) 10 March 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Palestine Thaqafi Tulkarem
4 2DF Mohammed Abumayyala (1995-02-19) 19 February 1995 (age 29) 1 0 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
5 2DF Yaser Hamed (1997-12-09) 9 December 1997 (age 27) 7 2 Spain Portugalete
7 2DF Musab Al-Battat (1993-11-21) 21 November 1993 (age 31) 40 1 Palestine Shabab Al-Dhahrieh
14 2DF Abdallah Jaber (1993-02-17) 17 February 1993 (age 31) 54 2 Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel
15 2DF Abdelatif Bahdari (1984-02-20) 20 February 1984 (age 40) 71 9 Palestine Markaz Balata
17 2DF Mousa Farawi (1998-03-22) 22 March 1998 (age 26) 4 0 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
28 2DF Mohammed Khalil (1998-04-05) 5 April 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Palestine Al-Bireh
3 3MF Mohammed Bassim (1995-07-03) 3 July 1995 (age 29) 14 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh
6 3MF Shadi Shaban (1992-03-04) 4 March 1992 (age 32) 22 0 Palestine Jabal Al-Mukaber
8 3MF Mohammed Yameen (1994-09-19) 19 September 1994 (age 30) 20 1 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
9 3MF Tamer Seyam (1992-11-25) 25 November 1992 (age 32) 40 6 Morocco Hassania Agadir
10 3MF Sameh Maraaba (1992-11-28) 28 November 1992 (age 32) 34 9 Palestine Markaz Balata
13 3MF Mahmoud Abu Warda (1995-05-31) 31 May 1995 (age 29) 5 0 Palestine Markaz Balata
20 3MF Nazmi Albadawi (1991-08-24) 24 August 1991 (age 33) 7 1 United States North Carolina FC
21 3MF Islam Batran (1994-10-01) 1 October 1994 (age 30) 17 3 Jordan Al-Jazeera
23 3MF Mohammed Darweesh (1991-06-02) 2 June 1991 (age 33) 36 0 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
24 3MF Ahmad Maher Wridat (1991-07-22) 22 July 1991 (age 33) 27 8 Palestine Shabab Al-Dhahrieh
25 3MF Odai Kharoub (1993-02-05) 5 February 1993 (age 31) 4 0 Palestine Merkaz Balata
3MF Jonathan Cantillana (1992-05-26)26 May 1992 (aged 26) 20 9 Indonesia PSIS Semarang
11 4FW Yashir Islame (1991-02-06) 6 February 1991 (age 33) 18 7 Malaysia PKNP F.C.
12 4FW Khaled Salem (1989-11-17) 17 November 1989 (age 35) 30 3 Palestine Markaz Balata
4FW Oday Dabbagh (1998-12-03) 3 December 1998 (age 26) 21 4 Kuwait Al-Salmiya
4FW Mahmoud Wadi (1994-12-19) 19 December 1994 (age 30) 12 0 Egypt Al-Masry
4FW Saleh Chihadeh (1994-08-25) 25 August 1994 (age 30) 3 0 Switzerland FC Thun

Recent call-ups

The following footballers were part of a national selection in the past 12 months, but are not part of the current squad.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Anas Abu Seif (1995-04-20) 20 April 1995 (age 29) 0 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
DF Ahmed Zreiqi (1996-04-01) 1 April 1996 (age 28) 0 0 Palestine Markaz Balata v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Musa Saleem 1 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil SC v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Waleed Qombor (1997-08-10) 10 August 1997 (age 27) 0 0 Palestine Jabal Al-Mukaber Club v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Ahmed Bahdari (1986-07-01) 1 July 1986 (age 38) 0 0 Palestine Khadamat Rafah v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
DF Jaka Ihbeisheh (1986-08-29) 29 August 1986 (age 38) 15 3 Slovenia NK Bravo 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Daniel Mustafá (1984-08-02) 2 August 1984 (age 40) 4 0 Argentina Sarmiento de Leones [es] 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Alexis Norambuena (1984-03-31) 31 March 1984 (age 40) 16 1 Chile Deportes Melipilla 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Tamer Salah (1986-04-03) 3 April 1986 (age 38) 18 0 Palestine Hilal Al-Quds 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Mohammed Saleh (1993-07-18) 18 July 1993 (age 31) 9 0 Egypt Al-Masry 2019 AFC Asian Cup
MF Ahmed Abu Khadijah (1998-05-19) 19 May 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
MF Haitham Khairallah (1992-07-07) 7 July 1992 (age 32) 2 0 Palestine Palestinian Forces v.  Saudi Arabia; 15 October 2019
MF Mohammed Jabari (1998-05-19) 19 May 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
MF Amir Qitawi (1999-05-01) 1 May 1999 (age 25) 0 0 Palestine Markaz Balata v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
FW Mohammed Balah (1993-09-04) 4 September 1993 (age 31) 6 1 Oman Saham Club v.  Syria; 15 October 2019
MF Mahmoud Eid (1993-06-26) 26 June 1993 (age 31) 18 1 Sweden Kalmar FF v.  Singapore; 10 September 2019
FW Raed Dahla (1998-02-01) 1 February 1998 (age 26) 0 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
FW Rami Al-Masalma (1991-11-12) 12 November 1991 (age 33) 5 0 Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil v.  Syria; 11 August 2019

Competitive record

See also: Palestine national football team results
Overview
Event 1st place 2nd place 3rd place 4th place
World Cup 0 0 0 0
Asian Cup 0 0 0 0
AFC Challenge Cup 1 0 0 1
WAFF Championship 0 0 0 0
Arab Nations Cup 0 0 0 0
Pan Arab Games 0 0 1 2
Asian Games 0 0 0 0

FIFA World Cup

Palestine's FIFA World Cup record Qualification record
Host nation(s)
and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad Outcome Pld W D L GF GA
Uruguay 1930 Not a FIFA member Not a FIFA member
Italy 1934
France 1938
Brazil 1950
Switzerland 1954
Sweden 1958
Chile 1962
England 1966
Mexico 1970
West Germany 1974
Argentina 1978
Spain 1982
Mexico 1986
Italy 1990
United States 1994
France 1998
South Korea Japan 2002 Did not qualify 2nd of 4 6 2 1 3 8 9
Germany 2006 3rd of 4 6 2 1 3 11 11
South Africa 2010 First round loss 2 0 0 2 0 7
Brazil 2014 First round win, second round loss 4 1 2 1 5 4
Russia 2018 3rd of 5 8 4 2 2 24 5
Qatar 2022 To be determined Ongoing
Canada Mexico United States 2026 To be determined To be determined
Total Best: N/A 0/21 0 0 0 0 0 0 — Total 53 19 13 21 86 71
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place Home venue

AFC Asian Cup

Main article: Palestine at the AFC Asian Cup
Palestine's AFC Asian Cup record Qualification record
Host nation(s)
and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad Outcome Pld W D L GF GA
Hong Kong 1956 Did not participate Did not participate
South Korea 1960
Israel 1964
Iran 1968
Thailand 1972
Iran 1976
Kuwait 1980
Singapore 1984
Qatar 1988
Japan 1992
United Arab Emirates 1996
Lebanon 2000 Did not qualify 4th of 5 4 1 0 3 3 8
China 2004 4th of 4 6 0 2 4 3 11
Indonesia Malaysia Thailand Vietnam 2007 4th of 4 5 1 1 3 3 9
Qatar 2011 The 2010 AFC Challenge Cup served as the qualifying tournament
Australia 2015 Group stage 16th of 16 3 0 0 3 1 11 Squad Qualified as 2014 AFC Challenge Cup winners
United Arab Emirates 2019 Group stage 17th of 24 3 0 2 1 0 3 Squad 3rd of 5, 2nd of 4 14 9 2 3 49 8
China 2023 To be determined Ongoing
Total Best: group stage 2/17 6 0 2 4 1 14 — Total 29 11 5 13 58 36
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place/semi-finalists   Home venue

AFC Challenge Cup

Palestine's AFC Challenge Cup record Qualification record
Host nation(s)
and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad Outcome Pld W D L GF GA
Bangladesh 2006 Quarter-finals 5th of 16 4 2 1 1 16 2 Squad Qualified as invitees
India 2008 Withdrew Withdrew
Sri Lanka 2010 Did not qualify 3rd of 3 2 0 2 0 1 1
Nepal 2012 Fourth place 4th of 8 5 2 1 2 7 6 Squad 1st of 4 3 2 1 0 5 1
Maldives 2014 Champions 1st of 8 5 4 1 0 6 0 Squad 1st of 4 3 2 1 0 10 0
Total Best: champions 3/5 14 8 3 3 29 8 — Total 8 4 4 0 16 2
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place Home venue

WAFF Championship

Palestine's WAFF Championship record
Host nation(s)
and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad
Jordan 2000 Group stage 7th of 8 3 0 1 2 3 5 Squad
Syria 2002 5th of 6 2 0 0 2 1 4 Squad
Iran 2004 5th of 6 2 0 1 1 2 3 Squad
Jordan 2007 5th of 6 2 0 0 2 0 3 Squad
Iran 2008 6th of 6 2 0 0 2 0 4 Squad
Jordan 2010 9th of 9 2 0 0 2 1 6 Squad
Kuwait 2012 8th of 12 3 1 0 2 3 4 Squad
Qatar 2014 7th of 9 2 0 1 1 0 1 Squad
Iraq 2019 3th of 9 4 2 1 1 6 5 Squad
Total Best: group stage 9/9 22 3 4 15 16 35 —
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place/semi-finalists   Home venue

Arab Nations Cup

Palestine's Arab Nations Cup record
Host nation(s)
and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA
Lebanon 1963 Did not participate
Kuwait 1964
Iraq 1966 Group stage 5th of 9 3 1 1 1 8 3
Saudi Arabia 1985 Did not participate
Jordan 1988
Syria 1992 Group stage 5th of 6 2 0 1 1 1 2
Qatar 1998 Did not qualify
Kuwait 2002 Group stage 9th of 10 4 0 3 1 7 9
Saudi Arabia 2012 Group stage 9th of 10 2 0 1 1 2 4
Total Best: group stage 4/9 11 1 6 4 18 18
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place Home venue

Pan Arab Games

Palestine's Pan Arab Games record
Host nation,
city and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad
Egypt Alexandria 1953 Group stage 6th of 6 2 0 0 2 3 13 Squad
Lebanon Beirut 1957 Did not participate
Morocco Casablanca 1961
United Arab Republic Cairo 1965 Fourth place 4th of 10 6 2 1 3 7 9 Squad
Syria Damascus 1976 Final group 6th of 7 6 2 1 3 4 9 Squad
Morocco Rabat 1985 Did not participate
Syria Aleppo 1992 Group stage 5th of 6 2 0 1 1 1 2 Squad
Lebanon Beirut 1997 Did not participate
Jordan Amman 1999 Third place 3rd of 11 6 2 2 2 6 9 Squad
Egypt Cairo 2007 Did not participate
Qatar Doha 2011 Fourth place 4th of 12 5 1 1 3 5 11 Squad
Total Best: third place 6/11 27 7 6 14 26 55 —
  Champions    Runners-up    Third place    Fourth place Home venue

Asian Games

Palestine's Asian Games record
Host nation,
city and year 		Round Pos Pld W D L GF GA Squad
India New Delhi 1951 Did not enter
Philippines Manila 1954
Japan Tokyo 1958
Indonesia Jakarta 1962
Thailand Bangkok 1966
Thailand Bangkok 1970
Iran Tehran 1974
Thailand Bangkok 1978
India New Delhi 1982
South Korea Seoul 1986
China Beijing 1990
Japan Hiroshima 1994 Withdrew
Thailand Bangkok 1998 Did not enter
2002–present See Palestine national under-23 football team
Total Best: N/A 0/13 0 0 0 0 0 0 —
  Gold    Silver    Bronze Home venue

Records and fixtures

See also: Palestine national football team records and statistics

As of 19 November 2019, the complete official match record of the Palestine national team comprises 219 matches: 58 wins, 57 draws and 104 losses. During these matches, the team scored 270 times and conceded 349 goals. Palestine's highest winning margin is 11 goals, which has been achieved against Guam in 2006 (11–0). Their longest winning streak is 7 wins, and their unbeaten record is 12 consecutive official matches.

The entire match record can be examined on the following articles:

Upcoming fixtures are listed on the 2020–29 results page.

List of matches played at home

  Win   Draw   Loss

Palestine  v  Jordan
26 October 2008 Friendly Palestine  1–1  Jordan Al-Ram, Palestine
Report Stadium: Faisal al-Husseini International Stadium
Palestine  v  Afghanistan
3 July 2011 2014 WCQ R1 Palestine  1–1  Afghanistan Al-Ram, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Stadium: Faisal al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 9,000
Referee: Banjar Al-Dosari (Qatar)
Palestine  v  Thailand
28 July 2011 2014 WCQ R2 Palestine  2–2  Thailand Al-Ram, Palestine
18:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Faisal al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 11,500
Referee: Salah Abbas Alabbasi (Bahrain)
Palestine  v  United Arab Emirates
8 September 2015 2018 WCQ R2 Palestine  0–0  United Arab Emirates Al-Ram, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 15,000
Referee: Ali Sabah Adday Al-Qaysi (Iraq)
Palestine  v  East Timor
29 March 2016 2018 WCQ R2 Palestine  7–0  East Timor Hebron, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Dora International Stadium
Attendance: 6,000
Referee: Hettikamkanamge Perera (Sri Lanka)
Palestine  v  Tajikistan
6 September 2016 Friendly Palestine  1–1  Tajikistan Hebron, Palestine
Report Stadium: Dora International Stadium
Referee: Murad Al Zawahreh (Jordan)
Palestine  v  Oman
13 June 2017 2019 Asian Cup qual. Palestine  2–1  Oman Al-Ram, Palestine
23:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 11,000
Referee: Sivakorn Pu-udom (Thailand)
Palestine  v  Bhutan
10 October 2017 2019 Asian Cup qual. Palestine  10–0  Bhutan Hebron, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Dora International Stadium
Attendance: 7,250
Referee: Rowan Arumughan (India)
Palestine  v  Maldives
14 November 2017 2019 Asian Cup qual. Palestine  8–1  Maldives Jenin, Palestine
16:00 UTC+2 Report Stadium: Arab American University Stadium
Attendance: 5,750
Referee: Dmitry Mashentsev (Kyrgyzstan)
Palestine  v  Iraq
4 August 2018 Friendly Palestine  0–3  Iraq Al-Ram, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Report Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Referee: Murad Al Zawahreh (Jordan)
Palestine  v  Pakistan
16 November 2018 Friendly Palestine  2–1  Pakistan Al-Ram, Palestine
15:00 UTC+2 Report Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Referee: Imad Al-Bouji (Palestine)
Palestine  v  Uzbekistan
5 September 2019 2022 WCQ R2 Palestine  2–0  Uzbekistan Al-Ram, Palestine
17:00 UTC+3 Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)		 Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 6,740
Referee: Fu Ming (China)
Palestine  v  Saudi Arabia
15 October 2019 2022 WCQ R2 Palestine  0–0  Saudi Arabia Al-Ram, Palestine
16:00 UTC+3 Report (FIFA)
Report (AFC)		 Stadium: Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium
Attendance: 12,000
Referee: Ahmed Al-Kaf (Oman)

Player records

Most-capped players

File:Jaber.png
Abdallah Jaber is Palestine's joint 4th most-capped player, with 57 caps.
# Player Period Caps Goals
1 Abdelatif Bahdari 2007– 74 9
2 Khader Yousef 2008–2016 68 2
3 Ramzi Saleh 2000–2015 67 0
4 Abdallah Jaber 2014– 57 2
5 Ashraf Nu'man 2009–2016 56 14
6 Hussam Abu Saleh 2010–2015 55 4
7 Saeb Jendeya 1999–2008 48 1
8 Ismail Al-Amour 2005–2015 46 7
9 Musab Al-Battat 2013– 43 1
10 Murad Ismail 2010–2015 41 2

As of 19 November 2019. Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

Top scorers

# Player Period Goals Caps Average
1 Fahed Attal 2005–2012 16 36 0.44
2 Ashraf Nu'man 2009–2016 14 56 0.25
3 Ziyad Al-Kord 1999–2006 11 25 0.44
4 Jonathan Cantillana 2015– 10 26 0.38
5 Sameh Maraaba 2014– 9 32 0.28
Abdelatif Bahdari 2007– 74 0.12
7 Ahmad Maher Wridat 2011– 8 29 0.28
Abdelhamid Abuhabib 2012– 33 0.24
9 Murad Alyan 2011 7 9 0.78
Ismail Al-Amour 2005–2015 46 0.15

As of 19 November 2019. Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

See also

Notes and references

Notes

References

  1. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Men's World Ranking". FIFA. 19 December 2024. Retrieved 19 December 2024.
  2. Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 5 January 2025. Retrieved 5 January 2025.
  3. Khalidi, Issam. "The Coverage of Sports News in "Filastin" 1911 – 1948" (PDF).{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. Khalidi, Issam (2013). One Hundred Years of Football in Palestine. Al Manhal. p. 25. ISBN 9796500159331.
  5. "Sports and Aspirations: Football in Palestine, 1900–1948" (PDF).
  6. Hofmann, Annette; R. Gems, Gerald; Smith, Maureen (2018). Games and Sporting Events in History: Organisations, Performances and Impact. Routledge. ISBN 9781134819935.
  7. James Michael, Dorsey (2016). "Soccer: Moulding the Middle East and North Africa" (PDF). James Michael Dorsey. Utrecht University Repository. p. 50.
  8. ^ Khalidi, Issam (21 October 2018). "Palestine's Bid to Join the International Football Association FIFA 1945 - 1998". History of Palestine Sports. Retrieved 23 December 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. "Palestine's 87-year journey to the Asia Cup is the most uplifting story you'll read all week". SportsJOE.ie. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  10. "Arab Cup". www.rsssf.com.
  11. "5th Pan Arab Games, 1976 (Syria)". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  12. "Arab Cup". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  13. الخالدي, عصام (2013). "فلسطين وعضوية الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم (الفيفا)" (PDF). عصام الخالدي (in Arabic). No. 16. Institute for Palestine Studies. pp. 1–13.
  14. "المنتخب الوطني الأول لكرة القدم يحقق فوزاً غالياً على سنغافورة في التصفيات المؤهلة لكأس آسيا 2007". Wafa (in Arabic). 1 March 2006. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  15. "منتخبا الأردن وفلسطين يجسدان الوفاء للقدس .. بالتعادل". وكالة جراسا الاخبارية (in Arabic). 28 October 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  16. "Football finds a way, even in fractured Palestine". The Straits Times. 10 September 2019.
  17. "Palestine blame Israel, want to re-schedule Singapore match". The Star Online. 31 October 2007. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  18. "Nepal  0-0 Palestine  / AFC Challenge Cup Qualifying 2010". www.footballdatabase.eu. {{cite web}}: no-break space character in |title= at position 6 (help)
  19. "Kyrgyz Republic vs. Palestine - 30 March 2009 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  20. "موقع الاتحاد الاسيوي : نتائج مميزة لفلسطين قبل كأس التحدي". وكالــة معــا الاخبارية (in Arabic). 19 December 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  21. "Afghan Football Team Loses World Cup Qualifier In Tajikistan". RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty. 29 June 2011. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  22. "2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™ - Matches - Palestine-Afghanistan". FIFA.com.
  23. "Azərbaycan - Fələstin oyunu bitdi - FOTO - YENİLƏNİB". Milli.Az (in Azerbaijani). 29 February 2012. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  24. "AFC Challenge Cup: Palestine 1-0 Kyrgyzstan". akipress.com. 20 May 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  25. "Myanmar vs. Palestine - 21 May 2014 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  26. "Match Report of Maldives vs Palestine - 2014-05-23 - AFC Challenge Cup - Global Sports Archive". globalsportsarchive.com. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  27. "Palestine get past Afghanistan and advance to AFC Challenge Cup final". The National. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  28. "Historic football victory provides another global stage for Palestine". Mondoweiss. 31 May 2014.
  29. "مدرب فلسطين يستقيل في خضم الاستعدادات لكأس آسيا!". Al-Quds Al-Arabi (in Arabic). 11 September 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  30. "Palestine lose 4-0 to Japan in first Asian Cup match". 12 January 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2020 – via www.bbc.com.
  31. Frankland, Neil (16 January 2015). "Palestine 1-5 Jordan: Ray Wilkins' side keep Asian Cup hopes alive". Mail Online. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  32. "Below-par Iraq book Iran QF". ESPN.com. 20 January 2015. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  33. "المنتخب الفلسطيني يقسو على تيمور بسباعية نظيفة - المركز الفلسطيني للإعلام". www.palinfo.com. 29 March 2016. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  34. "البوليفي خوليو سيزار يتولى تدريب منتخب فلسطين". Al Arabiya (in Arabic). 19 December 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  35. ""الفدائي" بقيادة سيزار.. للخلف سِر". الترا فلسطين (in Arabic). 28 March 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  36. "Nepal out". The Himalayan Times. 7 October 2018.
  37. "Plucky Palestine clinch Bangabandhu Gold Cup". Dhaka Tribune. 12 October 2018.
  38. "شاهد| مفاجأة تصفيات آسيا لكأس العالم 2022.. فلسطين تفوز على أوزبكستان وكوبر". البيان نيوز (in Arabic). 5 September 2019.
  39. "قدم: فلسطين تخسر من سنغافورة بتصفيات مونديال 2022". Haberler.com (in Arabic). 10 September 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  40. "Palestinians, Saudis play to draw in historic match". AP NEWS. 15 October 2019. Retrieved 24 December 2019.
  41. "فلسطين تخسر أمام اليمن فى التصفيات الآسيوية". وكالة سند للأنباء (in Arabic). 14 November 2019. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
  42. Taji Farouky, Saeed (7 June 2006). "Palestine team's World Cup woes". BBC News Online. Retrieved 28 September 2006.
  43. "Singapore, Palestine match called off". the-afc.com. 15 November 2006. Archived from the original on 6 August 2007.
  44. "Asia WCQ: Singapore Given Tie After Palestine No-Show". GOAL.com. 29 October 2007.
  45. Wahl, Grant, "Welcome to the World", Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue Online, 8 August 2011, pp. 36–40.
  46. "Film documents hardships facing Palestinian football team". 4 November 2004. Archived from the original on 3 October 2006. Retrieved 28 September 2006.
  47. Willacy, Mark (30 June 2006). "Palestinian National Football Team prepares for the next World Cup despite difficulties". ABC News (Australia) Online. Retrieved 28 September 2006.
  48. "Three Palestinian soccer players killed in Gaza violence | Top Russian news and analysis online | 'RIA Novosti' newswire". En.rian.ru. 14 January 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2010.
  49. Israel to release Mahmoud Sarsak Archived 6 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine (18 June 2012). Associated Press.
  50. "'Red Crescent workers behind shooting attack' } Jerusalem Post } 'Jerusalem Post". jpost.com. 2 April 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
  51. ^ "Shin Bet busts Palestinian footballer for meeting with Hamas terrorist in Qatar &#124". 11 June 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  52. "'FIFA to fund Gaza soccer field repair' } ynetnews } 'Ynetnews". ynetnews.com. 4 November 2006. Retrieved 9 September 2012.
  53. "&#124". 11 June 2014. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
  54. FIFA.com. "Live Scores - Palestine - Matches". FIFA.com. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  55. "Palestine - List of International Matches". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  56. ^ Al-Najjar, Ibrahim. "Palestine – Record International Players". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  57. ^ "Palestine Player Database". Football Palestine. Retrieved 19 December 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links

Palestine national football team
Venues
Records and statistics
Team
Individual
Players
Results
Men's
Women's
AFC Asian Cup
Other tournaments
Noted matches
Culture
Other PFA teams
Men's
Women's
Palestine squads
Palestine squad – 2015 AFC Asian Cup
Palestine
Palestine squad – 2019 AFC Asian Cup
Palestine
Links to related articles
Palestine Football in the State of Palestine
Palestinian Football Federation
National teams
League competitions
Cups
Defunct competitions
Related
National men's football teams of Asia (AFC)
AFC Asian Cup
West Asia (WAFF)
Central Asia (CAFA)
South Asia (SAFF)
East Asia (EAFF)
Southeast Asia (AFF)
Defunct
Former
Palestine national football team – managers
Categories: