Meet The People of The FIFA Arab Cup™ (Palestine Edition - Part 4)

27 December 2021

Storyteller: Shada Salhab

Can you introduce yourself and tell us about your football life?

Hello, my name is Shada Salhab, I was born and raised in Hebron in Southern Palestine. I studied Media and Journalism at Hebron University. After graduating I received a scholarship for a Masters in Media and Cultural Studies programme at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies in Qatar. Upon receiving my higher degree in 2017, I started working as a producer at Al-Jazeera Documentary.

Now that I’ve told you a little about myself, let me tell you why I love football…When I was a kid, I was Zinedine Zidane and the Brazilian Ronaldo’s biggest fan! I also really enjoy watching football matches, but not so much playing. I am a huge supporter of the Palestinian, Qatari and the Italian national teams.

How was your experience of the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ and watching Palestine play?

It was a great experience for me to be part of the Arab fans who gathered here in Qatar, and to be able to visit the amazing stadiums. We cheered, sang, and supported our national team and it felt like home. Being in Qatar and having this much love for Palestine meant a lot to me.

The best moment during the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ was when I saw the Palestinian flag flying high in the middle of the stadium, as well as the Palestinian national anthem playing, and the whole crowd singing along.

It was such a wonderful atmosphere. Everyone in the stadium came to support and cheer, regardless of the results! We came with paintings of the Palestinian flag on our faces and wore the national team jersey.

What did you try to show with the photos? Was there any wider meaning?

I wanted to encourage people to come to the stadium and show the experience of being with the spectators rather than watching the matches behind the TV screens.

You will notice I took a photograph of Nasser Dahbour - one of the Palestinian fan leaders and a true football fanatic. The image was taken while he was drumming in the stadium and making people cheer. This gentleman is very talented, he knows everything about football and writes articles about it all the time.

Why is it so important to support the Palestinian national football team?

As a Palestinian living abroad, I like attending any events related to Palestine. I was in the Jassim Bin Hamad Stadium when the Palestinian national team won against Comoros to qualify for the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ tournament. Despite the team arriving from Palestine where they face many challenges in the world of football, they still had hope and ambitions to take a part in the prestigious tournament. This is a message to the world that the Palestinian football team is trying to seek normalcy despite all the pressure they face. Here’s an interesting fact for you…Did you know that the first Palestinian football team was formed in 1908 in Jerusalem?

What opportunities are there for women in football in Palestine and Qatar?

Believe it or not, there’s actually a Palestinian women’s football team, but as you can imagine, due to the challenging circumstances in my country, they are not given the full attention needed to further develop their skill set. In Qatar, there’s a good women’s national football team that plays friendlies and competes from time to time.

What does football mean to you?

While I’m not one for football technicalities, the sport in general and the stadium experience in specific really do excite me! I made sure to attend as many matches as possible during the FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™, and I can’t wait until the world’s biggest football tournament – the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, kicks-off next year. It makes me really proud that Qatar will be the first country in the Middle East to host this highly-anticipated tournament. It’s a great opportunity to showcase to the world our abilities to host a large-scale event, while offering our renowned traditional Arabian hospitality.

What ambitions do you have for the future?

My lifelong dream is to become a filmmaker producing films about Palestine, and hopefully one day I can direct a film about the Palestinian women's national football team.

I will keep supporting the Palestinian national football team wherever they go, and one day, I would love to be part of their media team at one of the international championships.

How is Qatar changing ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™? Do you have a message for the world ahead of the much-anticipated event?

Qatar is rapidly and continuously expanding. We have witnessed many remarkable achievements in the past few years, from the completion of the Doha Metro, to the development of infrastructure, events, tourism, and green spaces around the country. Of course, let’s not forget the eight iconic stadiums, which are now complete and ready for the tournament. The FIFA Arab Cup Qatar 2021™ was an appetiser for Qatar, and definitely a good test run for the preparations ahead of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™.

I am sure that Qatar will succeeded in bringing together athletes from all over the world for the first time in the Middle East region. It goes without saying that everyone, whether a football fan or not, is invited to take the opportunity to come and live the experience of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™. I am sure it will be such an amazing experience for all guests, and a forever remembered event.

For images, please click here.

This special series was created in collaboration between Qatar Airways and Goal Click.