# Palestine at the AFC Asian Cup

Palestine participated in their maiden AFC Asian Cup, the 2015 tournament, held in Australia. It was the first time Palestine qualified for the Asian Cup and in a major tournament, and this performance has been accredited for the rise of Palestine in the international arena, and the team is widely seen as the symbol of unity for Palestinians amidst the conflict between Hamas and Fatah over control of Palestinian Authority. Their second competition appearance came in 2019. Palestine qualified for the Asian Cup for the third consecutive time in 2023. It was the first ever time that Palestine qualified for the knockout round of the Asian Cup bringing hope to Palestinians amidst the Israel-Hamas War.

## Overall record

| AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | AFC Asian Cup record | Qualification record | Qualification record | Qualification record | Qualification record | Qualification record | Qualification record |
| Year | Result | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA |
| 1956 to 1996 | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 2000 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 8 |
| 2004 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 11 |
| 2007 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 9 |
| 2011 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2015 | Group stage | 16th | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 13 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 18 | 7 |
| 2019 | Group stage | 17th | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 14 | 9 | 2 | 3 | 49 | 8 |
| 2023 | Round of 16 | 14th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 7 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 20 | 10 |
| 2027 | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | Qualified | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 6 |
| Total | Round of 16 | 4/19 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 7 | 21 | 46 | 19 | 8 | 19 | 84 | 52 |
    *Denotes draws include knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out.

## By match

AFC Asian Cup History :
| Year | Round | Score | Result |
| 2015 |
| 2015 | Round 1 | Palestine 0 – 4 Japan | Loss |
| 2015 | Round 1 | Palestine 1 – 5 Jordan | Loss |
| 2015 | Round 1 | Palestine 0 – 2 Iraq | Loss |
| 2019 |
| 2019 | Round 1 | Palestine 0 – 0 Syria | Draw |
| 2019 | Round 1 | Palestine 0 – 3 Australia | Loss |
| 2019 | Round 1 | Palestine 0 – 0 Jordan | Draw |
| 2023 |
| 2023 | Round 1 | Palestine 1 – 4 Iran | Loss |
| 2023 | Round 1 | Palestine 1 – 1 United Arab Emirates | Draw |
| 2023 | Round 1 | Palestine 3 – 0 Hong Kong | Win |
| 2023 | Round of 16 | Palestine 1 – 2 Qatar | Loss |

## Participation
### 2015 Australia
#### Group D

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Japan | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | +7 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Iraq | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | +2 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 3 | Jordan | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 3 | |
| 4 | Palestine | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 11 | −10 | 0 | |
| 12 January 2015 |
| Japan | 4–0 | Palestine | Newcastle Stadium, Newcastle |
| 16 January 2015 |
| Palestine | 1–5 | Jordan | AAMI Park, Melbourne |
| 20 January 2015 |
| Iraq | 2–0 | Palestine | Canberra Stadium, Canberra |
Palestine's maiden Asian Cup debut occurred in 2015 when they were grouped with Japan, Iraq and Jordan, and thus it was a significant moment for the Palestinian team. Their opening match was against reigning champions Japan which ended in a 0-4 loss. Palestine suffered another loss in their next match, 1–5 to Jordan, in which Jaka Ihbeisheh scored their first ever goal in the Asian Cup. Palestine ended their campaign by a 0–2 defeat to Iraq, thus ended last with zero point.

### 2019 UAE
#### Group B

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Jordan | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | +3 | 7 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | Australia | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 6 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 3 | Palestine | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 2 | |
| 4 | Syria | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | −3 | 1 | |
Palestine made their second appearance in the tournament, having been drawn with two Levant rivals, Syria and Jordan, as well as for the second time in a row against defending champions, Australia. Palestine, in this tournament, had successfully achieved two points for the first time, with two draws against Syria and Jordan, both ending 0–0. However, their encounter against Australia ended with a 0–3 defeat, which meant that Palestine obtained two points and finished without a goal scored in the tournament. They were eliminated from the tournament as they did not have enough points to qualify as a third-placed team.

### 2023 Qatar
#### Group C

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | Iran | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | +5 | 9 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | United Arab Emirates | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 4 | +1 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 3 | Palestine | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 4 | Hong Kong | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 7 | −6 | 0 | |

#### Ranking of third-placed teams

| Pos | Grp | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification |
| 1 | E | Jordan | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | +3 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 2 | C | Palestine | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 3 | B | Syria | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 4 | D | Indonesia | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 3 | Advance to knockout stage |
| 5 | F | Oman | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 2 | |
| 6 | A | China | 3 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 2 | |