Following Palestine’s 1-1 draw against Korea Republic on Match Day Six of 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification one thing was clear.
Palestine had to host their games in Amman. A return to the Faisal Al-Husseini Stadium in Jerusalem was a pipe dream. Other venues- whether it be Kuwait City, Kuala Lumpur, or Doha had failed to provide the team with any significant boost.
The air in Amman was different. The official attendance of Palestine vs. Korea Republic was a paltry 2,405. The noise produced by that crowd was louder than anything produced at other venues that drew three to five times that amount.
These were the right type of fans who could provide Palestine with a sense of home.
In the aftermath of the result that kept Palestine’s faint World Cup qualification hopes alive the Vice President of Iraq’s Football Association said “In the event that Palestine picks Jordan as a neutral location for our qualifier we will request the venue be changed. This is the least we can do to protect our rights.”
The Palestine Football Association remained mum on the matter. Palestine Football Association President Jibril Rajoub even went so far to say that the issue did not come up in a meeting with his counterpart Adnan Darjal earlier this month.
Palestine did start lobbying publicly for their choice of venue. To the surprise of everyone- the push was made for Faisal Al-Husseini Stadium in the Jerusalem suburbs. The choice was somewhat strange given the PFA has yet to find a way to revive the league in the West Bank.
In spite of a deteriorating situation in several major Palestinian cities the AFC and FIFA sent an international match commissioner to assess the stadium and review the conditions in Palestine. The visit in early February surprisingly confirmed that both the stadium and the PFA were fully prepared to host the match.
In a statement released earlier today the PFA stated: “Following this assessment, we received official correspondence from the AFC and FIFA affirming our right to host the match at our home stadium, provided we obtained the approval of the Iraqi Football Association. However, we were surprised to learn that our colleagues in the Iraqi Football Association had unilaterally decided to decline playing in Palestine and directly communicated this to the AFC and FIFA without consulting the PFA. This decision denied us the opportunity to reach a mutual understanding with the Iraqi Football Association regarding playing in Palestine or agreeing on a neutral venue suitable for both sides.”
Jilted by Iraq’s unilateral action Palestine decided to up the ante by selecting Jordan as their neutral ground.
For their part, Iraq also put out a statement that revealed several details not mentioned by the PFA. First, the AFC and FIFA inspection revealed that the Faisal Al-Husseini Stadium could not be equipped with VAR technology.
Palestine had also put forth a request to play the game in April outside the FIFA window. A bizzarre request given that Palestine’s entire team plays abroad in leagues not required to released players to their national teams outside of the FIFA window.
Iraq also elaborated that an appeal has been sent to the AFC demanding an alternative neutral ground be chosen. The IFA cited the Group B standings and the fact that Jordan and Iraq are currently fighting it out for second place and a direct qualification slot.
The statement concluded that the choice of venue “threatens fair play” and “creates an unfair advantage.”
Iraq’s football observers fear that Jordanian football supporters will flood the game and cheer for Palestine. Those fears are largely unfounded. Palestine has never drawn anything close to a sellout crowd at the Amman International Stadium. The paltry crowd in attendance for the match against Korea is a perfect example of that.
Furthermore, Jordan is home to a sizeable Iraqi population who have been known to show up in droves when the national team comes to town. In fact, during 2014 World Cup qualification Jordan and Iraq met four times with Iraqi fans packing the stands in Amman in 2011 and 2012.
The incessant online banter risks creating a Streisand Effect of sorts. The more Iraqi football talks about a hostile environment the more Jordanian fans become aware of an opportunity to one-up their new rivals.
