CHENNAI: As the Palestinian U17 men's football team walked off the field at the EKA Arena in Ahmedabad after holding hosts India to a 1-1 draw in the U17 AFC Asian Cup Qualifiers, one could sense the relief and joy on their faces. For they knew what the result meant and they also knew what the sport is for them — a way of finding joy and showing resistance.
Even more so considering the fact that their road to this tournament has not been pleasant. With the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine, their grounds, in which they grew up to play the game, is now non-existent and other sporting infrastructure has come to rubble (Israel have denied any accusations of mass destruction). With several players in the team getting displaced and their lives turned upside down, they had lost their documents and identity proofs.
Assembling the players for camps and travelling for tournaments became an uphill task. The Palestinian Football Association selected 23 players for the squad of which 18 were from the West Bank (only 11 showed up) while others are Palestinians based abroad. For them, the preparation for this tournament began two months ago with a month-long camp, before setting off to Jordan for the West Asian Football Federation (WAFF)’s U17 Championship in October. They did not win any matches but the preparation continued in Maldives during a 14-day camp.
“Because of the current situation, we could not bring players to train together, and our preparation was not that good,” Mohammed Joma Suleiman, the team’s manager, told this daily. "We cannot bring anyone from Gaza also because of the war and the genocide is happening there (Israel have repeatedly denied any and all accusations of genocide)," he added.
Then came a long and tiring 30-hour flight before they eventually landed in Ahmedabad for the week-long campaign. "Representing Palestine is a great honour, and we will fight to achieve our dreams and the hopes of our nation,” Head coach and technical director of Palestine’s youth team Mohammed Sharbaji was quoted saying by the Palestinian Football Association.
Despite all these hardships, the players are ready to give it all.“We know the situation is difficult but the players take pride in what they do. (they feel) they have to do something to people in Palestine, in Gaza and everywhere,” Suleiman said.
Football, for the players, is “a way of resistance,” Suleiman said. “They know what it means to have the Palestinian flag on their crests. They also want to showcase the Palestinian identity, and for that they work hard. Since the start, they know this is a mission and this way, they can share the happiness to Palestinian kids. Every player has something special. They have different styles of play, backed by their own talents. We wish to do something good here,” the team manager added.
If latest records from the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) are to go by, this could be their third competitive game of 2025. And they have kicked off the tournament in a stellar fashion with a 1-1 draw against India. They knew it was crucial for their qualification to the Asian Cup. One that will help them go into the clashes against Lebanon, Iran and Chinese Taipei with confidence.