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Palestinian footballers played Basque Country in Bilbao amid Gaza conflict protests. Fans waved Palestinian flags.
Palestinian players and Spanish players from the Basque Country (AP)
A selection of Palestinian footballers faced a group of Spanish players from the Basque Country on Saturday in a friendly match with political overtones related to Israel’s military actions in Gaza.
Organisers stated that around 50,000 spectators had tickets for the match at San Mames Stadium, home of Athletic Bilbao.
Many fans waved Palestinian flags and flags of the northern Basque Country region. Several thousand people also marched with flags before the game.
Spain has seen significant protests against Israel’s military response to the October 2023 Hamas attack.
Bilbao hosted the first in a series of large protests against an Israeli-owned cycling team at the Spanish Vuelta in September.
The Basque team included players from Athletic and Real Sociedad, along with other professional sides. None of Spain’s footballers were available as they were playing a World Cup qualifier.
The Palestinian team will also face a selection of players from Spain’s northeastern Catalonia region in Barcelona on Tuesday.
Ranked 98th by FIFA, their dream of participating in their first World Cup ended this summer in the third round of the Asian qualifiers.
Most of the players have never set foot in Gaza. Some play in Qatar, one in Chile, in Iceland, or in the United States.
They are the last representatives of Palestinian football, devastated at all levels by two years of Israeli bombardment, described as genocide by the Spanish government, in response to Hamas’s unprecedented cross-border attack on October 7, 2023.
Since then, there has been no league, no functioning clubs, and hundreds of athletes have been injured or killed, including the country’s most famous footballer, Suleiman Al-Obeid, 41, nicknamed the “Palestinian Pele”.
‘Stop This Genocide’
The Palestine Football Association said he was killed when Israel attacked civilians waiting for humanitarian aid.
“From day one, they targeted sports. They destroyed all the infrastructure in Gaza, 289 (locations) in total,” Palestinian Football Federation president Jibril Rajoub tells AFP.
“1,100 athletes, employees, coaches, and referees have been killed, including our captain (Al-Obeid). Thousands have been injured, hundreds of others are missing.”
“Israel should be sanctioned,” continues the 72-year-old chief, also the secretary-general of Fatah, the party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas.
“We are here on a mission,” explained coach Abu Jazar.
“Our message to the whole world is this — put pressure on this occupation to stop this genocide.”
(With inputs from Agencies)
Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes cricket content, havin…Read More
Ritayan Basu, Senior Sub-Editor, Sports at News18.com. Has been covering domestic and and international football for nearly a decade. Has played and covered badminton. Ocassionally writes cricket content, havin… Read More
November 16, 2025, 08:11 IST
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