Doha: A last-gasp own goal determined the outcome of the FIFA Arab Cup 2025™ Group A opener, as the Palestinian national team claimed a 1-0 victory over Qatar on Monday evening at Al Bayt Stadium.

The only goal of the match occurred in the dying moments of stoppage time. Qatari defender Sultan Al-Brake turned a cross into his own net, handing Palestine the decisive advantage.

The fixture drew an attendance of over 60,000 fans. After a first half that ended scoreless with mediocre performances from both sides, the pace heightened after the break. Palestine emerged as the more assertive team, maintaining continuous pressure and missing three genuine chances to score.

For their part, the Maroons sought to dictate the tempo but lacked the tactical ingenuity to create significant opportunities against Palestinian goalkeeper Rami Hamada.

This result propelled Palestine to the pole position of A with three points, tying them with Syria, which defeated Tunisia in the group’s other fixture. The group also includes the teams of Tunisia and Syria.

Officiating duties were managed by an international team led by Swedish referee Glenn Nyberg. His assistants were Mahbod Beigi (first assistant) and Andreas Söderkvist (second assistant), both from Sweden. The fourth official was New Zealand’s Campbell Kirk, with Isaac Trevis (New Zealand) as the fifth official. Australian Jared Gavan served as the Video Assistant Referee (VAR), assisted by Algerian official Lahcen Ben Brahim.

This edition of the Arab Cup marks the second consecutive time the tournament is organized in Qatar under FIFA’s governance, following the 2021 version that came before Qatar’s staging of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.