"But, for more than 50,000 fans in the San Mames stadium in the northern city of Bilbao on Saturday, the focus of attention was squarely on two teams who won't be there: the Palestine and Basque Country national football teams. The streets of Bilbao were packed with Palestinian flags, with supporters of both clubs united by a shared cause. Money raised from the match went to Doctors Without Borders , and the entertainment before the players crossed the white line comprised a mix of the two cultures."
""Palestine is living through a genocide, they are being massacred in Gaza, and history will ask us what we were doing at that moment to try to stop it," De Gregorio said. "And from the world of sports, from football, what we are trying to do is help economically and give visibility worldwide to this match and this situation," he said. "What we want is to send that solidarity to the Palestinian people, so everyone can see it.""
More than 50,000 people filled Bilbao's San Mamés stadium for a friendly between the Palestine and Basque Country national teams, with streets displaying Palestinian flags and joint cultural performances before kickoff. The match raised money for Doctors Without Borders and aimed to draw international attention and visibility to the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where a UN inquiry described atrocities and casualty estimates approach 70,000. Organizers framed the event as an act of solidarity after Palestine's World Cup qualifying exit, prioritizing economic support and public awareness over competitive outcome.
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