Four days before the Palestinian and Iranian soccer teams were to meet for a friendly, the Palestinian Football Association canceled the match due to “technical” problems, sparking outrage and rumors that the cancellation had been instigated by Arab countries in the Persian Gulf.
In a letter addressed to the Iranian team, the secretary-general of the Palestinian Football Association wrote of the scheduled Dec. 28 friendly, “I want to take this opportunity to thank you for the planning that was done for this meeting. But, unfortunately, I have to inform you that due to technical reasons after returning from China and preparing for the AFC Asian Cup in Australia, the Palestinian team is not able to meet.”