More than 23,000 tickets sold for Catalonia vs Palestine game in Barcelona

All is set at Barcelona's Olympic Stadium for Tuesday's game between Catalonia and Palestine.

Organizers have already sold 23,000 tickets for the 6.30 pm game and will now open the stadium's second tier.

Although the stadium can hold nearly 56,000 fans, campaigners hope that at least half of it, more than 30,000 seats, will be filled.

On Monday, the two coaches presented the match with 400 white T-shirts laid out on the stadium floor as a tribute to the 400 Palestinian footballers who have died in Israeli attacks over the past two years.

The presentation was attended by both coaches: Gerard López for Catalonia and Ihab Abu Jazar for Palestine.

"We are happy to be in Catalonia," said Ihab Abu Jazar. "We are happy that tomorrow we will play a historic match, and that tomorrow will be a historic day for the Palestinian people as we face the occupation and convey the message of the Palestinian people to the world through Catalonia and through tomorrow’s match."

"At the beginning, we had four players from the Gaza Strip, and I myself, the coach, am also from Gaza," said Abu Jazar. "Right now, it’s difficult for anyone in Gaza to leave the Strip because it is under siege, and getting out is extremely hard."

Israeli attacks have destroyed much of Palestine's sports infrastructure over the last two years of war, including stadiums and sports clubs. 

"Certainly there would have been players inside Palestine, in the Gaza Strip, who could have been part of the team," Abu Jazar said.

López said that the expected attendance is between 20,000 and 25,000 fans, but he hopes to reach 30,000 at the last minute.

"Words have to be backed up by actions. Tomorrow’s game, with this massive attendance, makes our response as a Catalan nation very proud. It will be a great festival of football and solidarity," he said.

The game comes just a few days after the Basque Country national team played the Palestinian national team at San Mamés Stadium last Saturday.

Attendance there reached 50,000 fans, helped by the fact that it was a Saturday.

"The game in Catalonia is on a Tuesday, a working day, with children coming out of school and the match starting early. We all have to make a maximum effort," he said.

López added that "after everything the Palestinians have suffered," being able to play this match "fills them with incredible excitement."

"As the Catalan national team, this is something we have never experienced, and it fills us with pride and honor. We will welcome them and try to support them in every way we can," he said.

Politicians and organizations

Pro-independence politicians and organizations affirmed the "international and official nature" of the Catalan football team on Monday, one day before the match against the Palestinian national team. 

Under the slogan "One nation, one national team," the event was attended by the president of the Catalan parliament Josep Rull, first vice president Raquel Sans, former footballer Oleguer Presas, and representatives from Òmnium Cultural, the Catalan National Assembly, FC Barcelona, and the Escarré International Center for Ethnic Minorities and Nationals. 

Rull highlighted the dual purpose of Tuesday's match: to "claim Catalonia's international representation directly in the world as its own national team" and also express solidarity with the Palestinian people, which "connects with a very important part of the country's soul."

Rull will attend the match against the Palestinian national team and said he hoped the stadium will be "packed to capacity."