Palestine out of 2025 FIFA Arab World Cup, but wins hearts
Palestine National Football Team’s dream to play Semi Finals of the 2025 FIFA Arab World Cup ended after it got defeated by Saudi Arabia Thursday
2025 FIFA Arab World Cup: Palestine National Football Team’s dream to play Semi Finals of the 2025 FIFA Arab World Cup ended after it got defeated by Saudi Arabia Thursday.
The Fidai, as the Palestine soccer team is known as, had earlier defeated Arab giants Qatar and drew their fixture against Tunisia to reach the Arab World Cup 2025 Quarter Finals.
The Palestinians could not win the Quarter Final but stood tall even after tasting 2-1 defeat at the hands of Saudi Arabia.
The Palestinian footballers gave the Green Falcons some nightmarish moments during the match and took the match to extra time. But in the end it was Saudis who emerged as the winners.
Saudi Arabia Vs Palestine Highlights
The 2025 FIFA Arab World Cup Quarter Finals between Saudi Arabia and Palestine played at Lusail Stadium in Doha, Qatar was one of the most intense of the round.
The Green Falcons took early lead with a penalty kick by Firas Al-Buraikan in the 58th minute. However, Palestine’s Fedayeen responded quickly through Oudi Dabbagh, equalising the score in the 64th minute, which kept the match even until the end and forced it into extra time.
Despite the effort and high spirits shown by the Palestinian team, Mohammed Kano scored the winning goal for Saudi Arabia in the 115th minute, ending the match 2-1 and qualifying the Green Falcons for the Semi-Finals.
Palestine, qualifying for the Arab World Cup Quarterfinals for the first time, had been one of the tournament's surprise packages, topping Group A with five points (wins over Qatar and draws against Syria and Tunisia).
Saudi Arabia, on the other hand, finished second in Group B with six points (wins over Oman and Comoros, loss to Morocco). The two teams have a long head-to-head history, with Saudi Arabia unbeaten in 10 previous meetings (5 wins, 5 draws).
2025 Arab World Cup Semi-Final Lineup
In other quarterfinal matches of the Arab World Cup, Morocco defeated Syria 1-0 played at Khalifa International Stadium in Doha.
Morocco will now face the winner of Friday’s match between Algeria and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the semi-finals.
On the other hand, Saudi Arabia will meet the winner of Jordan vs Iraq in the Arab World Cup Semi Finals.
The Semi-Finals of the 2025 FIFA Arab Cup are also set for a single day, with both matches at Al Bayt Stadium on December 15, 2025.
The Final of the tournament will be played at Lusail Stadium in Lusail—the same venue that hosted the 2022 FIFA World Cup Final on Thursday December 18, 2025.
[Zohair Mohammed Safwan Faizee is Staff Writer at ummid.com]
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