Given the current tragedies taking place in the Gaza Strip and in the rest of the occupied Palestinian territories, representation and visibility make up some of the most crucial and needed elements to shed light on their plight and raise global awareness on the ongoing humanitarian crisis and systemic injustices they’re enduring and have been enduring for the past seven decades and a half.
Dismissed and often left out of most international gatherings in the realms of entertainment, culture, and sports as a result of the hardships they constantly face, on Sunday, the Algerian Football Federation revealed that they will be hosting Palestine’s football matches on their soil in an effort to show solidarity and ensure they get their opportunity, as everyone else is, to compete at the highest level despite all the obstacles against them.
Right now, national teams all across the Asian continent are preparing for the qualifying games of the World Cup’s next edition, set to be held in 2026 in Canada, the United States, and Mexico, as well as the 2027 Asian Cup of Nations, which will be held in Saudi Arabia. However, given the current events in Palestine, their national team will be unable to participate in full spirit.
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Following a request to the Algerian authorities by Jibril Rajoub, the head of the Palestinian football federation, Algeria has agreed to host “all official and non-official matches involving the Palestinian team’s preparation for qualification to the 2026 World Cup and 2027 Asian Cup and to assume all associated costs.”
The first game will see Palestine fence against bordering neighbor Lebanon on Nov. 16 as part of the qualifying process to the 2026 FIFA World Cup, followed by Australia less than a week afterward, on Nov. 21.
