Physical Address
304 North Cardinal St.
Dorchester Center, MA 02124
Gaza City, Gaza Strip 43-year-old Sameeh Totah sits outside his tent in Yarmouk Stadium in Gaza City, looking at his cell phone. World Cup the game that took place last night.
While millions of soccer fans around the world follow the tournament in real time, Sameeh often has no choice but to rely on delayed broadcasts or broadcasts of matches due to internet outages and power outages.
Recommended Articles
list of things 3end of series
“Things are not good, especially the internet network. They keep slowing down,” he said. “Sometimes you get a chance to watch all the games, but the power cut ruins the experience. It’s not like before the war, when there were lights and there were places where people gathered to watch the matches.”
The father of six remembers the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, still at his home in Gaza City in Zeitoun with his family.
Watching football was a social pastime that brought friends and family together, and provided a temporary escape despite the challenges facing Gaza at the time.
He said: “Back then people were free. We could gather with our friends and loved ones and watch the matches.
Sameeh no longer lives in Zeitoun. They were displaced by the war that destroyed the nation of Israel – which has now killed them more than 73,000 Palestinians from October 2023 – and his house remains in the Israeli-occupied zone.
Now, inside a tent near Gaza City’s Yarmouk Stadium, he compares those memories to his current reality.
For Sameeh, the fight didn’t just make it difficult to watch football; it has also taken away the great excitement that accompanied the competition.
“It’s very difficult to follow matches like we used to,” he said. “Sometimes I watch big things when I already know the outcome.
However, football still gives him a few moments of respite from the hardships of migration and war.
He said: “Sometimes I take my phone and watch matches to reduce my stress and forget, even for a short time, about the problems we are facing.
“Life in a tent is very difficult.
He changed lives
But the challenges of following the World Cup in Gaza go beyond the lack of electricity and internet.
War has changed the way people live and the relationship they had with the things they once had.
While some people continue to follow the tradition of watching football, others say that the war has taken away the passion that was around the competition.
For 21-year-old Yousef al-Nuaizi from Gaza City, football still has a special place in his life.
A long-time supporter of the Portuguese national team, he has followed football for many years.
However, watching the World Cup this year has been a chore that often requires more effort than enjoyment.
Recently, he set out with his friends to look for a venue to show one of the matches.
“We walked a long way to the cafe to watch the game,” he said. We arrived early in the morning, but when we got there it was closed because there was no electricity.
Even when they found a place to watch the game, they only made it 40 minutes before exhaustion overtook them.
Yousef says it is another example of how simple things in everyday life have become difficult since the war began.
“Our lives have changed,” he said. “There are no necessities, even going to the toilet requires waiting for an hour.
“At home I could do whatever I wanted freely.
He also remembers what happened at the World Cup in Qatar in 2022, when football meetings were celebrations and not challenges.
“We had a big screen, national flags, coffee, tea, snacks and sweets,” he recalled. We used to get together, watch matches and enjoy the atmosphere.
Ironically, Yarmouk Stadium, where he now lives as a refugee after being evicted from his home in Shujayea, was one of those fond memories.
“I used to come here to watch the local football games,” he said. “This stadium had good memories for everyone.
As a result of the war, many stadiums and stadiums across the Gaza Strip have been turned into shelters for displaced families, while many others have been destroyed and put out of business.
Although he still follows matches whenever possible, the fight has changed his relationship with the game for good.
“Honestly, I don’t enjoy the game anymore,” he said.
“I often watch them to pass the time. The real passion is gone. Almost all the passion in Gaza is gone after everything we’ve seen.”
Fear of attack
Despite the challenges, a few people are trying to rebuild a small part of the World Cup for displaced families.
In the narrow corridors of the migrant camps, a few people have created small gathering places where people can share happy moments.
Inside the temporary restaurant built of wood and wood, the flags of the participating countries are hung on the fabric walls decorated with pictures of football matches, creating an atmosphere similar to previous games.
The owner, 26-year-old Tariq al-Jadba, spends most of his time running the venue to provide refugees with a place to watch matches.
Watching the World Cup together, he says, has been more difficult than in previous years.
Even though many fans gather at the cafe for big games, fear always remains.
“People come to watch football, but we watch with fear,” he said. Especially in games that are played late at night or early in the morning.
The challenges continue in the security sector. Chronic shortages of electricity and fuel – consequences of Israel restrictions – Make saving the screen a daily challenge.
“We all rely on local generators,” he explained. “Sometimes we try to coordinate with generator owners to provide electricity during matches, but most of them do not have enough fuel.
Despite these obstacles, al-Jadba was determined to keep the cafe open. For him, football remains an integral part of Gaza culture.
“I’ve been following football since I was five years old,” he said. “Palestinians in Gaza love football, we are young and athletic.
“This has made it difficult for people to watch the match,” he said. But when the Arab teams play, there is also excitement and the excitement returns.
“People here are looking for any place that allows them to escape the real war and regain, even briefly, a normal life,” he added.
