The Palestinian Football Association has announced the resumption of domestic football and the launch of the "Thousand Martyrs' Cup" beginning September 4, ending a nearly three-year suspension.
Speaking at a press conference on Monday at the Joseph Blatter Academy in Al-Bireh, association president Jibril Rajoub called the move a start to restoring life to Palestinian sports and offering hope to Palestinians at home and in the diaspora.
Rajoub stated that over the past three years, Israeli aggression aimed to erase the Palestinian sports movement from memory as part of political and geographic objectives.
The "Thousand Martyrs' Cup" will kick off simultaneously across three locations as a transitional league, ahead of a classified league next season.
Opening matches feature Jabal Al-Mukaber against Shabab Al-Khaleel at Faisal Al-Husseini Stadium in the occupied West Bank, Shabab Rafah against Khadamat Rafah in Gaza, and Al-Ansar facing Al-Nahda at the Ain al-Hilweh camp in Lebanon.
The initial group stage will operate by region and branch. The association will provide a uniform grant to every qualifying club to assist with equipment and transportation costs.
A total of 226 clubs will compete, including 146 from the occupied West Bank (48 north, 60 centre, 38 south), 44 from Gaza, and 36 from Lebanon.
Three physical trophy editions are being crafted for the occupied West Bank, Gaza, and Lebanon, each bearing the names of 1,014 athlete martyrs.
Financial strain
Rajoub highlighted severe financial difficulties, noting that the Palestinian government recently served as the sole funder, supplemented by FIFA projects, international grants, and the Norwegian Football Federation.
FIFA projects include establishing a technical centre in Jerusalem, renovating Faisal Al-Husseini Stadium, funding youth centres, and supporting Phoenix centres in Gaza.
However, Rajoub acknowledged that a bank loan to finance the restart has not been secured, though FIFA prize money for the national team's recent Arab Cup participation is expected shortly.
Palestine will also send a 108-member delegation — including 67 athletes across 19 sports — to the Asian Games in Japan, supported by the Olympic Council of Asia.
The senior national team will play friendly matches in China in September, while the Olympic team will face a Turkish team in Konya on September 30, under an Islamic Solidarity Sports Federation proposal.
Rajoub urged FIFA and the international community to safeguard the rights of Palestinian athletes, reiterating calls to enforce regulations equally and uphold international sporting charters.
