Algeria agree to host Palestine games
BBC – Algeria says it has agreed to host the Palestine national team’s forthcoming football matches following a request from the Palestinian FA.
Palestine are scheduled to start their 2026 World Cup campaign in the Asian section next month.
Their first qualifier, away to Lebanon on 16 November, will be played in the United Arab Emirates.
A ‘home’ match against Australia five days later looks set to be played in the North African country.
Following the attack on Israel by Hamas on 7 October, the Gaza Strip has been the subject of retaliatory air strikes, which have resulted in nearly 3,000 deaths, with the Israelis looking set to launch an imminent ground offensive.
“The president of the Algerian Football Federation, Mr Walid Sadi, announces that our country will host the official Palestine-Australia match, scheduled for November,” the Algerian federation wrote on its website.
The statement added that the decision to host “all official and unofficial matches as part of the Palestinian football team’s preparation for the 2026 World Cup and the 2027 Asian Cup qualifiers” was taken “in accordance with Algeria’s leading authorities”.
The Algerian federation added that it will pay all costs, such as transport and accommodation, related to Palestine’s stay.