AMMAN, Jordan (AP) 鈥 An engrossing qualifying journey of 16 games and the obstacles of a war came crashing down in an instant for Oday Dabbagh and his Palestinian team.
Their legacy will long continue.
Players left the field in tears in the immediate aftermath at the King Abdullah II Stadium in Amman, Jordan, last Thursday after their quest for a first appearance at a evaporated on a contentious penalty awarded deep in extra time. Fans looked on, stunned.
鈥淚t's very hard,鈥 Dabbagh, the team's star striker, told The Associated Press. 鈥淚t was massive for us to get to the next stage 鈥 we prepared well, we had a positive atmosphere, and we had the fans with us. We gave everything, but it was gone in a moment.鈥
Needing to win its last three Group B games to reach the playoffs for the last two of , the No. 101-ranked team in the world beat Iraq in Basra in March, Kuwait in Kuwait City on June 5. Five days later, it was leading 1-0 against Oman in Jordan in the 97th minute.
The Palestinians had for a World Cup. Then Oman was awarded, and scored, a penalty to make it 1-1 in the last real act of the game.
Not long after the dejected players had picked themselves up, the Palestine Football Association (PFA) made an official complaint to soccer's world governing body, FIFA, about the penalty. It didn't change the fact, however, that the long road trip was over.
鈥淲e tried to put smiles on the faces of Palestinians amid their great pain,鈥 head coach Ihab Abujazar said. 鈥淭he heroic players are our pride and glory, a symbol of all that is beautiful in the Palestinian nation.鈥
Playing Away
It may have been different if the Palestinian team, admitted into FIFA in 1998, was able to play home games in front of its fans in Gaza or the West Bank in the third round of qualifying. The meant that couldn't happen. And so the many of the team's home games have been taking place in the nearby Jordanian capital of Amman, home to a large community of Palestinians.
鈥淚t is easier to play in your home,鈥 Dabbagh, who helped Aberdeen win the Scottish Cup last month, said. 鈥淏ut the circumstances there are so difficult so we choose to play in Amman as it is close to Palestine, the people are the same, and we have a lot of fans there."
There's been no domestic soccer in the Palestinian territories since the war started in 2023. Hundreds of athletes are among the more than 55,000 Palestinians killed in the conflict and sports facilities have been destroyed.
鈥淓verything that goes on makes us all sad,鈥 Dabbagh said. 鈥淎s players, we try to focus on football during the games, but we use what is happening as motivation to bring happiness to the people of Palestine.鈥
All but two of the roster of 27 national squad players are contracted to foreign clubs either in the region or in Europe, a change from the start of the conflict when to report for international duty.
Over the past year or so, has assembled for training camps in Algeria, Qatar and Saudi Arabia to prepare for World Cup qualifying.
The top two teams in each of three Asian groups in the third round earned direct spots for next year's World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The third- and fourth-place teams in each group advanced to a playoff for two more places. A win would have secured fourth spot in the group for the Palestinians. The last-minute draw meant they finished a point behind Oman in fifth.
What's next?
Now their focus has to shift to the 2027 Asian Cup, which will take place in Saudi Arabia. The Palestinian team has already qualified for the tournament.
Dabbagh is ready to show that the team is set to remain a force in Asian soccer and continue to be ambassodors for millions of people.
鈥淲e will keep using football as a message to show the world that there are other things in Palestine鈥 he said. 鈥淲e will keep going. The dream is not over, it is just delayed.鈥
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