Cape Town – The City of Cape Town on Sunday said it will support the South African Football Association’s (SAFA) upcoming exhibition matches between the Palestine national football team and local invitational XIs.
The City’s sponsorship includes a waiver of rental hire costs for the two matches at Athlone Stadium, which SAFA has scheduled for 11 and 18 February.
The City said it will also provide R400 000 in event support services, including traffic, waste management and related services to ensure a successful event.
“Cape Town looks forward to welcoming the Palestinian national football team to our city,” said Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis.
“We are glad and proud to support this event.
“We hope that Capetonians will come out to enjoy these matches and show support for peace and justice in Palestine.
“This is an important symbolic way of supporting the two-state solution and the full recognition of Palestinian statehood.”
Alderman JP Smith, Mayoral Committee Member for Safety and Security said: “Sports have played an important role in our democratic journey, and I’m proud that the City of Cape Town is partnering with SAFA to host the Palestinian national football team.
“This sponsorship aligns with our past sponsorships of similar sporting events in the city, and we are looking forward to two great days at Athlone Stadium.”
SAFA will announce further details about the exhibition matches in due course.
The Palestinian national football team is taking part in the ongoing Asian Cup with their domestic league suspended amid the war in Gaza.
Support for the team has been clear from the off in Qatar.
Speaking about the team’s progress, Palestine’s captain said they had fulfilled “a promise to the Palestinian people” after reaching the AFC Asian Cup knockout rounds for the first time on Tuesday.
The 3-0 victory over Hong Kong was also their first win in the history of the competition and enough to squeeze into the last 16 as one of the four best third-placed teams.
Palestine’s victory came against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war in the Palestinian territory of Gaza.
