In a region fraught with political turmoil and societal constraints, the Palestinian Women’s National Football Team has emerged as a symbol of resilience and inspiration. Under the leadership of manager Deema Youssef and captain Aya Khattab, the team navigates a path laden with challenges but driven by an unwavering commitment to the sport and their country. They spoke to Woman This Month to share their heroic story.
Ms. Youssef, a former player and captain for the team before becoming its dedicated manager, begins by revealing the difficulty it has functioning on the international stage. “Managing the team, especially in the current challenging environment, is a significant responsibility. It’s not as easy as it sounds,” she explains. “There are numerous obstacles we face, from facilitating matches and practices to ensuring the safety of our players. The community is not as open to women’s sports as we hope for it to be someday.”
Despite these hurdles, she finds immense satisfaction in her role. “It brings me so much joy to see the girls pursuing their dreams of playing football and representing Palestine. It’s something I’ve always wanted to do myself. Moving from being a team captain to this managerial role is very important for me personally.”
The team’s journey on the international stage began in 2008 with its first international match, which ended in a tie. “It was a historic moment for Palestinian women’s football,” Ms. Youssef reminisces. She was quick to emphasise the team’s ambitions to reach the World Cup, highlighting the progressive steps the Palestinian Football Association is taking to achieve this goal. “We see how women’s football is reaching global stages nowadays, and we hope one day to be part of that. We are working step-by-step with a very young team, aged between 16 and 29.”
Ms. Khattab, the team captain, progressed with the national side through various age levels. “I’ve been playing for the team for about 10 years now,” she explains. “As a young girl, I was inspired by the Brazilian legend Marta and I’ve tried to emulate her. I started with the under 14s, 16s and 18s, before becoming a regular player and now captain.”
Both women were keen to shine a light on the impact of ongoing political issues on the team’s training and preparation. “It’s really hard for us. We stopped all sporting events or competitions throughout the country since the start of the war,” Ms. Youssef noted. “Getting the players together is a significant challenge due to checkpoints and border restrictions. Some training camps have as few as six players instead of the full team.” The team faces severe logistical challenges, with military presence and safety concerns affecting their operations and morale.
Despite these difficulties, the team’s spirit remains unbroken as it prepares for upcoming competitions, including the West Asia and Asian competitions next year. “We are very resilient people,” Ms. Khattab asserts. “Even with all the challenges, we manage to continue. We have faced situations like tear gas being thrown at us during a match, but we push through.”
The team also strives to connect internationally, recently playing a match against a local team in Ireland, Bohemians, and it had a significant impact. “We are open to any opportunity to play internationally, as it represents more than just competition for us; it’s about being seen and heard,” Ms. Youssef argues proudly. “We encourage international teams to reach out, so we can continue to foster hope and showcase our unyielding spirit.”
