Palestinians to play Australia in “home” game at neutral Kuwait in 2026 World Cup qualifying

By: The Associated Press Posted: 6:31 PM CST Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023

SYDNEY (AP) — Football Australia says its Socceroos will play Palestine in a second-round 2026 World Cup qualifier at the neutral venue of Kuwait on Nov. 21.

Read this article for free:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

To continue reading, please subscribe:

*First annual payment billed as $205.00 + GST for one year. This annual subscription will automatically renew at $233.00 + GST every 52 weeks (10% off the regular annual price of $259.35). Offer available to new and qualified returning subscribers only. Cancel any time.

SYDNEY (AP) — Football Australia says its Socceroos will play Palestine in a second-round 2026 World Cup qualifier at the neutral venue of Kuwait on Nov. 21.

Read unlimited articles for free today:

or

Already have an account? Log in here »

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 07/11/2023 (1065 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

SYDNEY (AP) — Football Australia says its Socceroos will play Palestine in a second-round 2026 World Cup qualifier at the neutral venue of Kuwait on Nov. 21.

“As a result of current circumstances in the region, the Asian Football Confederation formally requested that this designated home fixture for Palestine be held at a neutral venue,” Football Australia said in a statement.

Australian soccer administrators said the match would be played at Jaber Al-Ahmed International Stadium in Kuwait, five days after the Socceroos open the second round of Asian qualifying against Bangladesh in Melbourne.

Palestinians look at buildings destroyed in the Israeli bombardment in the morgue in Deir al Balah, Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023. (AP Photo/Hatem Moussa)

Hamas militants killed 1,400 people during an Oct. 7 rampage in southern Israel, sparking the ongoing war. Some 240 people Hamas abducted during the attack remain in Gaza, and more than 250,000 Israelis have evacuated homes near the borders of Gaza and Lebanon amid continuous rockets fired into Israel.

A month of relentless bombardment in Gaza has killed more than 10,300 Palestinians, two-thirds of them women and minors, according the Health Ministry of the Hamas-run territory. More than 2,300 are believed buried from strikes that reduced entire city blocks to rubble.