Palestine has won the Freedom Cup. They beat South Africa XI 1-0 in the final game of the Football for Humanity initiative. The match between the national sides dubbed as “The Freedom Cup” took place at the Athlone Stadium in Cape Town.
The match reaffirms South Africa’s solidarity with the Palestinian people who are fighting for liberation against the settler colonial entity called Israel. Speaking to Radio 786 the centre-back for the Palestinian soccer team, Bashar Shobaki says while they play abroad, they are worried about the safety of their families in the occupied lands.
The Supreme Council for Sports in Gaza has said that hundreds of players and sports figures have been killed in Israel’s aggression. It adds that dozens of stadiums and sports clubs have been destroyed and parts of them have been turned by the Israeli occupation military into detention, torture, and execution centres.
The Football for Humanity initiative has been hailed for its creativitiy. The Palestine Football Association President Jibril Rajoub says holding this historic meeting in Cape Town, not far from Robben Island, is a clear message to the Palestinian people that you are not alone.
That South Africa and the free people of the world are with you in your struggle for freedom and for an independent sovereign state. Rajoub was speaking ahead of Palestine’s game against South Africa XI at the Athlone Stadium.
