Australian authorities have knocked back a request from world football’s powerful governing body, FIFA, to allow Palestine Football Association president Jibril Rajoub into the country for Tuesday’s World Cup qualifier against the Socceroos in Perth. The Palestinian men’s team were scheduled to land in WA’s capital on a private jet from Doha about 8.30am on Saturday but Rajoub was not on the flight after the Department of Home Affairs sensationally denied his visa application.
The department was tight-lipped on the decision when approached by 7NEWS, saying “all non-citizens applying for visas to enter Australia are considered on an individual basis against legal requirements set out in Australia’s migration legislation”. It is understood FIFA, the world game’s leading authority, had tried to use its significant political power to intervene, but it did little to sway Australian authorities.