Hundreds of Palestinians gathered at cafes and public screens across the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza and in the occupied West Bank on Sunday to watch Spain defeat Argentina 1-0 in extra time in the 2026 FIFA World Cup final, erupting in celebrations that went far beyond football when Ferran Torres scored the decisive goal.
Spain’s choice of champion was never really about football for Palestinians. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has been one of Europe’s most outspoken advocates for Palestinian statehood, recognising Palestine as a state in May 2025 and imposing sanctions on Israel.
Barcelona star Lamine Yamal, whose father is Moroccan, waved a Palestinian flag from an open-top bus after winning La Liga in May. Spanish actor Javier Bardem held up a Palestinian flag throughout Spain’s World Cup campaign, telling another attendee at the semifinal that existence is resistance.
Nuseyrat resident Numan Abdullah told Anadolu Agency the crowd backed Spain because the country had stood by the Palestinian people for years, adding that the gathering also sent a message of peace from Gaza to the world.
Spain claims its second World Cup title in history, the first since 2010. For the people watching in Nuseirat, many of them displaced several times during more than two years of war, it was also something rarer: an evening where joy felt possible.
