The federation said in a statement: “We received a letter from the Asian Football Confederation and FIFA regarding the matches played on our land in the third stage of the qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup. We were informed through it that they cannot be played in Palestine.”
He continued: “Based on this message, we have chosen Malaysia as a virtual stadium for our national team in its match against its Jordanian counterpart on September 10, 2024.”
“We are deeply grateful to the countries that have offered to host our matches, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Kuwait, Algeria, Malaysia, Indonesia and Qatar. Their support shows strong solidarity and brotherhood with our Palestinian people, but Malaysia was chosen due to its geographical proximity to the venue of our first match against South Korea,” the AFC added in its statement.
He continued: “Also, Malaysia is not competing for a World Cup qualifying seat at this stage, and therefore our decision ensures fairness and respect towards the other teams in our group, and so that we do not share their fans and supporters on their lands.”
The statement concluded: “We in the Palestinian Federation are committed to demonstrating the steadfastness of our people through football, and with the support of the global sports community, and we seek to qualify for the World Cup with honor and determination. We affirm that we will continue the struggle to play our matches in Jerusalem, as we believe that this is our right and the right of our fans to support their national team and make history.”
The Palestinian national team will begin its journey in the qualifiers with a difficult test against South Korea on September 5, at the “Seoul World Cup” stadium, before facing the Jordanian “Nashama” scheduled for September 10.
Source: “Agencies”
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2024-08-10 02:45:29
