User:Nehme1499/sandbox/Palestine national football team

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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 93 Increase 4 (4 April 2024)[1]
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)

The Palestine national football team (Arabic: منتخب فلسطين لكرة القدم), 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. A team for the Arab residents of Palestine played its first match in 1953 and was recognized by FIFA in 1998, after the creation of the Palestinian National Authority. Palestine's first FIFA-recognized match was 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" (Arabic: أسود كنعان), "the Fedayeen" (Arabic: الفدائيون) and "the Knights" (Arabic: الفرسان). 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 since early 2016.

History[edit]

1928–1998: The beginning[edit]

Maccabi leader Yosef Yekutieli attempted for Maccabi Association's membership in the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) as early as 1925.[3] 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.[4] FIFA accepted the PFA on 17 May 1929 and during the first years of the PFA, Arab clubs partook in PFA sanctioned-matches.[5] 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.[6]

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.[7] Due to the 1936 revolt, the activities of the APSF were hampered and APSF completely disappeared toward the end of the 1930s.[8]

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.[9] 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.[10]

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.[11]

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.[12]

1998–2014: International recognition[edit]

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.[13][8] 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.[citation needed]

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.[14]

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.[15] 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.[16] However the FIFA refused to reschedule the match.[17]

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.[18] The final game finished in a 1–1 draw with Kyrgyzstan to miss the chance of qualification on goal difference.[19]

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.[20] 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,[21] while the second leg ended in a draw 1–1.[22] 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.[23] 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[edit]

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.[24] In the next group game, they played against Myanmar and won 2–0.[25] The ended the first round with a 0–0 draw against hosts Maldives.[26] 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.[27] At the final, Palestine clinched the win over the Philippines with a lone goal scored by Ashraf Nu'man through a free-kick.[28] 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.[29]

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.[30] 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.[31]. The participation ended with a 0–2 defeat to Iraq.[32] 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.[33]

[FEBRUARY 2018: BEST EVER RANKING THANKS TO UNBEATEN RUN]

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

[2019 ASIAN CUP QUALIFICATION + TOURNAMENT (FIRST TIME THEY QUALIFIED THROUGH REGULAR QUALIF.]

On 19 December 2017, Julio César Baldivieso was hired after Abdel Nasser Barakat was released.[34] The hiring was widely critisized by Palestinian fans.[35] 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.[36] 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.[37]

[2019 WAFF CHAMPIONSHIP (3RD PLACE)]

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.[38] Five days later, Palestine were defeated 2–1 to Singapore.[39] 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.[40] Thereafter, the team lost again to Yemen 1–0.[41]

Kits[edit]

Palestinian fans during the 2019 Asian Cup, wearing the traditional red kit.

[PARAGRAPH ABOUT THE FIRST KIT EVER WORN, THE CURRENT KIT & COLOURS (RED/WHITE) AND THE CHOICE OF THOSE COLOURS]

[KITS WORN IN IMPORTANT TOURNAMENTS (2015 AND 2019 AFC ASIAN CUP), WITH THEIR COLOUR AND KIT MANUFACTURERS, ALSO INFO ABOUT HISTORICAL KIT MANUFACTURERS]

[NICKNAMES, AND ORIGINS OF THOSE NICKNAMES. WHICH IS MORE COMMON? WHY?]

Home stadium[edit]

Crowd during the 2018 World Cup qualifier match against Timor-Leste at Dora Stadium.

[EXPLAIN SITUATION OF HOME STADIUM PROBLEM IN PALESTINE, DUE TO CONFLICT]

[MAIN VENUE (FAISAL AL HUSSEINI): WHEN IT WAS BUILT, CAPACITY, FIRST INTERNATIONAL MATCH, IMPORTANT MATCHES HOSTED]

[OTHER HOME VENUES IN WHICH PALESTINE HAS PLAYED]

Following their readmission by FIFA, the team played no official fixtures in the Palestinian territories due to security concerns until a match on 26 October 2008 against Jordan in the newly renovated Faisal Al-Husseini International Stadium in Al-Ram north of Jerusalem, which finished in a 1–1 draw. In recognition of their efforts the Palestinian Football Federation was awarded FIFA's inaugural Development Award and AFC National Team of the Year.

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

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 33) 33 0 State of Palestine Markaz Balata
16 1GK Naim Abu Aker (1995-01-20) 20 January 1995 (age 29) 0 0 State of Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel
22 1GK Rami Hamadeh (1994-03-24) 24 March 1994 (age 30) 27 0 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
1GK Amr Kaddoura (1994-07-01) 1 July 1994 (age 29) 0 0 Sweden Landskrona BoIS

2 2DF Ahmed Qatmish (1998-03-10) 10 March 1998 (age 26) 0 0 State of Palestine Thaqafi Tulkarem
4 2DF Mohammed Abumayyala (1995-02-19) 19 February 1995 (age 29) 1 0 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
5 2DF Yaser Hamed (1997-12-09) 9 December 1997 (age 26) 7 2 Spain Portugalete
7 2DF Musab Al-Battat (1993-11-21) 21 November 1993 (age 30) 40 1 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Dhahrieh
14 2DF Abdallah Jaber (1993-02-17) 17 February 1993 (age 31) 54 2 State of Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel
15 2DF Abdelatif Bahdari (1984-02-20) 20 February 1984 (age 40) 71 9 State of Palestine Markaz Balata
17 2DF Mousa Farawi (1998-03-22) 22 March 1998 (age 26) 4 0 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
28 2DF Mohammed Khalil (1998-04-05) 5 April 1998 (age 26) 0 0 State of Palestine Al-Bireh

3 3MF Mohammed Bassim (1995-07-03) 3 July 1995 (age 28) 14 0 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh
6 3MF Shadi Shaban (1992-03-04) 4 March 1992 (age 32) 22 0 State of Palestine Jabal Al-Mukaber
8 3MF Mohammed Yameen (1994-09-19) 19 September 1994 (age 29) 20 1 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
9 3MF Tamer Seyam (1992-11-25) 25 November 1992 (age 31) 40 6 Morocco Hassania Agadir
10 3MF Sameh Maraaba (1992-11-28) 28 November 1992 (age 31) 34 9 State of Palestine Markaz Balata
13 3MF Mahmoud Abu Warda (1995-05-31) 31 May 1995 (age 28) 5 0 State of Palestine Markaz Balata
20 3MF Nazmi Albadawi (1991-08-24) 24 August 1991 (age 32) 7 1 United States North Carolina FC
21 3MF Islam Batran (1994-10-01) 1 October 1994 (age 29) 17 3 Jordan Al-Jazeera
23 3MF Mohammed Darweesh (1991-06-02) 2 June 1991 (age 32) 36 0 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds
24 3MF Ahmad Maher Wridat (1991-07-22) 22 July 1991 (age 32) 27 8 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Dhahrieh
25 3MF Odai Kharoub (1993-02-05) 5 February 1993 (age 31) 4 0 State of 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 34) 30 3 State of Palestine Markaz Balata
4FW Oday Dabbagh (1998-12-03) 3 December 1998 (age 25) 21 4 Kuwait Al-Salmiya
4FW Mahmoud Wadi (1994-12-19) 19 December 1994 (age 29) 12 0 Egypt Al-Masry
4FW Saleh Chihadeh (1994-08-25) 25 August 1994 (age 29) 3 0 Switzerland FC Thun

Recent call-ups[edit]

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 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil v.  Syria; 11 August 2019

DF Ahmed Zreiqi (1996-04-01) 1 April 1996 (age 28) 0 0 State of Palestine Markaz Balata v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Musa Saleem 1 0 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil SC v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Waleed Qombor (1997-08-10) 10 August 1997 (age 26) 0 0 State of Palestine Jabal Al-Mukaber Club v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
DF Ahmed Bahdari (1986-07-01) 1 July 1986 (age 37) 0 0 State of Palestine Khadamat Rafah v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
DF Jaka Ihbeisheh (1986-08-29) 29 August 1986 (age 37) 15 3 Slovenia NK Bravo 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Daniel Mustafá (1984-08-02) 2 August 1984 (age 39) 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 State of Palestine Hilal Al-Quds 2019 AFC Asian Cup
DF Mohammed Saleh (1993-07-18) 18 July 1993 (age 30) 9 0 Egypt Al-Masry 2019 AFC Asian Cup

MF Ahmed Abu Khadijah (1998-05-19) 19 May 1998 (age 25) 0 0 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh v.  Uzbekistan; 5 September 2019
MF Haitham Khairallah (1992-07-07) 7 July 1992 (age 31) 2 0 State of Palestine Palestinian Forces v.  Saudi Arabia; 15 October 2019
MF Mohammed Jabari (1998-05-19) 19 May 1998 (age 25) 0 0 State of Palestine Ahli Al-Khaleel v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
MF Amir Qitawi (1999-05-01) 1 May 1999 (age 25) 0 0 State of Palestine Markaz Balata v.  Syria; 11 August 2019

FW Mohammed Balah (1993-09-04) 4 September 1993 (age 30) 6 1 Oman Saham Club v.  Syria; 15 October 2019
MF Mahmoud Eid (1993-06-26) 26 June 1993 (age 30) 18 1 Sweden Kalmar FF v.  Singapore; 10 September 2019
FW Raed Dahla (1998-02-01) 1 February 1998 (age 26) 0 0 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Bireh v.  Syria; 11 August 2019
FW Rami Al-Masalma (1991-11-12) 12 November 1991 (age 32) 5 0 State of Palestine Shabab Al-Khalil v.  Syria; 11 August 2019

Competitive record[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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[edit]

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.[42][43] 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.

Player records[edit]

Most-capped players[edit]

# 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.[44][45] Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

Top scorers[edit]

# 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.[44][45] Highlighted names denote a player still playing or available for selection.

See also[edit]

Notes and references[edit]

Notes[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking". FIFA. 4 April 2024. Retrieved 4 April 2024.
  2. ^ Elo rankings change compared to one year ago. "World Football Elo Ratings". eloratings.net. 27 March 2024. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
  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. ^ a b 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. ^ FIFA.com. "Live Scores - Palestine - Matches". FIFA.com. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  43. ^ "Palestine - List of International Matches". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
  44. ^ a b Al-Najjar, Ibrahim. "Palestine – Record International Players". www.rsssf.com. Retrieved 18 December 2019.
  45. ^ a b "Palestine Player Database". Football Palestine. Retrieved 19 December 2019.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

External links[edit]

{{Palestine national football team}}


Category:Palestine national football team Category:Asian national association football teams Category:National sports teams of Palestine Category:Football teams in Palestine