In a report on its official website, the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) highlighted the opportunity for the Palestinian national team to qualify for the final rounds of the Asian Football Confederation qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup.
The FIFA report stated that the Palestine national team stands out as one of the teams aspiring to achieve the achievement of qualifying for the third round of the qualifiers, as it has the opportunity to write a new chapter in the history of Palestinian football.
The Palestine national team is competing in a group that includes the teams of Australia, Lebanon, and Bangladesh, and the team achieved positive results in its recent matches, enabling it to occupy second place in the group with seven points behind the leading Australian team, and is five points away from the third-placed Lebanese team, which enhances its chances. In reaching the third round, they qualify directly to the global finals.
A draw with the Lebanese team on June 6 is enough for the Palestinian team to qualify for the third round of the qualifiers. If this is not achieved, the opportunity will be available to him five days later, on June 11, when he faces the Australian national team in the closing round of the second round.
The Palestinian national team has been progressing at a steady pace since Tunisian coach Makram Daboub took over its technical management in April 2021. During the 23 matches in which Daboub supervised the training of the national team at both the official and friendly levels, the team achieved 10 victories and tied in 4 matches, noting that he led the Palestine national team for a temporary period. Also in January 2020 during the Gold Cup tournament, and helped him achieve the title at that time, bringing his total tally to 14 victories in 27 matches during which he was able to score 44 goals, while conceding 27 goals. The team also advanced with him from 104th to 93rd place in the national team classification.
