FIFA and unfinished football business in al-Bireh

Today I attended a 2:30 football match at the al-Bireh stadium near Ramallah. Al-Bireh and Ramallah are sister cities. Psagot, an Israeli settlement, dominates the stadium from the next hill over. For background on the relationship between Psagot and al-Bireh and Ramallah, Brian Whitaker's 2001 Guardian article is helpful.

The pitch is artificial turf and looks like it is 120 meters by 60 meters or so. The teams were Beitilu and Bani Zaid in the Palestinian third division. The Palestine Football Association is headed by Jibril Rajoub.

One of the interesting aspects of the signage at the stadium for me is the bilingual text. I try to introduce my technical communication students to bilingual technical writing in one assignment in our intro class. This sign combines the illustration of the complex with Arabic and English text. This serves to make a linguistic connection with the world outside Palestine and also to explain to non-Arabic speaking visitors the background of the project. Importantly, the FIFA logo in the lower left-hand corner validates the important connection of the international football governing body with Palestinian football. I was told that Ronaldo, the famous Brazilian player, had visited this complex in the past. This also, of course, lends credibility to the local football association.

The play was quite fair and skilled. I would compare it favorably with an International League game in Des Moines. The referees took care of business. (The FIFA site shows two Palestinians with referee status and five with AR status.) There were probably 2 offside calls on each team and a total of 4 cautions and 1 send off. Beitilu won 2-0. No fans were allowed inside the gate. Only the two teams with their coaches, the officials and a few selected guests were allowed in the gate. The fans stood on a nearby half-finished building and along the fence.
The sign on the gate reads:

Al-Bireh Municipality International Stadium: Majed Asaad Pitch
We request the users of this stadium to observe the following: (1) It is absolutely forbidden to bring in food, drink, and any kind of snacks. (2) It is absolutely forbidden to smoke--smokers will be fined. (3) It is forbidden for players or teams to practice here (4) Those who enter should be wearing proper football shoes and (5) All requests to use the stadium should be addressed to the administrators of the stadium.