Current:Home > BackPalestinian soccer team prepares for World Cup qualifying games against a backdrop of war-Angel Dreamer Wealth Society D1 Reviews & Insights
Palestinian soccer team prepares for World Cup qualifying games against a backdrop of war
View Date:2024-12-23 16:14:57
Makram Daboub may be struggling to prepare his Palestinian team for the start of 2026 World Cup qualification but he takes some comfort, for now at least, that his players stuck in Gaza are safe.
The national soccer team’s head coach wanted to include Ibrahim Abuimeir, Khaled Al-Nabris, and Ahmed Al-Kayed in a training camp in Jordan ahead of World Cup qualifying games against Lebanon next Thursday and Australia on Nov. 21.
But they were unable to make it out of Gaza because of the Israel-Hamas war, now in its second month.
“So far they are fine,” Daboub told The Associated Press. “Many of their relatives have died, however, as a result of the bombing.”
Two players from Gaza, Egypt-based Mohamed Saleh and Mahmoud Wadi, are expected to join the Palestinian team in Jordan.
Daboub, who is from Tunisia, acknowledged it will be difficult for players to focus on football while many have families in danger.
“With the death and destruction in Gaza, the players are in a difficult psychological state,” Daboub said.
But for Susan Shalabi, the vice-president of the Palestine Football Association, there’s no question that the players and the people want the games to go ahead.
“This is a people that wants to be heard and seen by the rest of the world, wants to live normally like everyone else, so people care about their national team,” Shalabi told The AP. “It represents the yearning to be recognized as a free and sovereign nation.”
The Palestine Football Association became a full member of FIFA, soccer’s international governing body, in 1998 and has had some success at the regional level.
Appearing at the World Cup in 2026 would be a dream for a team that has never come close to reaching the finals via the Asian Football Confederation’s qualifying route.
There is a little more hope this time as Asia’s automatic qualification allocation has increased from four places in 2022 to eight in 2026, when the tournament will be co-hosted by the United States, Mexico and Canada.
The Palestinian team, which reached a highest FIFA ranking of 73 in 2018, appeared at the Asian Cup in 2015 and 2019 and has qualified for the 2023 continental tournament coming up in Qatar.
“There is no match that you can win in advance,” Daboub said. “But we have a good chance of reaching the next round of the World Cup qualifiers.”
To be among the 18 teams that advances into that next stage of Asian qualifying, the Palestinians need to finish in the top two of a group containing Australia – expected to take first spot – Lebanon and Bangladesh. They’re currently ranked No. 96, eight places higher than Lebanon and 87 above Bangladesh.
Palestine had initially been drawn to host Australia to start this round of qualifying, but t he game has been shifted to a neutral venue in Kuwait.
Preparations have already been interrupted as players were unable to leave to participate in a tournament in Malaysia last month. Now the team is based in Jordan to be sure of being able to travel for games.
A win against Lebanon in the United Arab Emirates next week — the game has also been moved from Beirut because of security concerns — would be a huge step toward the next stage.
“We will do our best,” Daboub said. “Football is the most popular game in the world. It brings people together. We aspire to achieve good results and qualify to show the Palestinian identity and that this is a people who deserve life and love peace.”
___
More AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
veryGood! (92)
Related
- She was found dead while hitchhiking in 1974. An arrest has finally been made.
- Jada Pinkett Smith Teases Possible Return of Red Table Talk After Meta Cancelation
- A U.K. agency has fined TikTok nearly $16 million for handling of children's data
- Search continues for 9-month-old baby swept away in Pennsylvania flash flooding
- Judge moves to slash $38 million verdict in New Hampshire youth center abuse case
- Jada Pinkett Smith Teases Possible Return of Red Table Talk After Meta Cancelation
- Feds Will Spend Billions to Boost Drought-Stricken Colorado River System
- Rep. Tony Gonzales, who represents 800 miles of U.S.-Mexico border, calls border tactics not acceptable
- Who will be in the top 12? Our College Football Playoff ranking projection
- Anne Arundel County Wants the Navy’s Greenbury Point to Remain a Wetland, Not Become an 18-Hole Golf Course
Ranking
- Lions find way to win, Bears in tough spot: Best (and worst) from NFL Week 10
- New Mexico Wants it ‘Both Ways,’ Insisting on Environmental Regulations While Benefiting from Oil and Gas
- In Philadelphia, Mass Transit Officials Hope Redesigning Bus Routes Will Boost Post-Pandemic Ridership
- Climate Change is Spreading a Debilitating Fungal Disease Throughout the West
- Steelers shoot for the moon ball, but will offense hold up or wilt in brutal final stretch?
- Behold the tax free bagel: A New York classic gets a tax day makeover
- Zac Efron Shares Rare Photo With Little Sister Olivia and Brother Henry During the Greatest Circus Trip
- Netflix will end its DVD-by-mail service
Recommendation
-
'Survivor' 47, Episode 9: Jeff Probst gave players another shocking twist. Who went home?
-
Illinois Solar Companies Say They Are ‘Held Hostage’ by Statehouse Gridlock
-
Shawn Johnson East Shares the Kitchen Hacks That Make Her Life Easier as a Busy Mom
-
Rep. Tony Gonzales, who represents 800 miles of U.S.-Mexico border, calls border tactics not acceptable
-
5-year-old boy who went missing while parent was napping is found dead near Oregon home, officials say
-
How one small change in Japan could sway U.S. markets
-
Florida Commits $1 Billion to Climate Resilience. But After Hurricane Ian, Some Question the State’s Development Practices
-
Anwar Hadid Sparks Romance Rumors With Model Sophia Piccirilli