Report: Algeria team to donate World Cup earnings to Gaza

The Algerian national football team will donate their estimated $9m-worth of prize money from the FIFA World Cup to the people of Gaza, according to media reports out on Wednesday. 

The team, known as the Desert Foxes, were narrowly knocked out in the second round of the World Cup by Germany on Monday but won the admiration of hoards of fans worldwide for their performance. 

Jordanian football writer Waleed Abu Nada quoted striker Islam Slimani as saying “they need it more than us,” in a reference to the proposed donation to Gaza which has been targeted by a renewed barrage of Israeli bombardment in recent weeks. 

Although Slimani earns a significant salary playing for Sporting Lisbon in Portugal, many other Algerian World Cup players play in Algeria, Tunisia and the lower divisions of the French league. This means they will be making a more significant sacrifice and has caused some to question the story. 

Social media users responded to the report with admiration, especially after the Algerian players had won so much support for their valiant performances in Brazil.

Algerian football writer Maher Mezahi, however, was quick to play down the reports saying there was little to suggest the donation had been confirmed.

Regardless of the mixed reports, the Algerian team has certainly done its country proud, arriving home to a rapturous welcome on Wednesday.

The team paraded through the streets of the capital Algiers where they were greeted by thousands of adoring fans.

Support for Palestine among Algeria’s fans was strong at the World Cup, where chants of “Palestine the martyrs” were regularly heard from the stands. 

There was even a standoff in one game, when an Algerian fan held up a Palestinian flag in response to a supporter behind him who was flying the Israeli flag.

Tensions are high in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories, where the deaths of three teenage Israeli settlers have sparked riots in Jerusalem with a 16-year-old Palestinian boy kidnapped and killed in what is believed to be a revenge attack.