Egypt coach Hossam Hassan waved a Palestinian flag on the pitch after his team's victory over Australia in the World Cup, saying he was dedicating it to both Egyptians and Palestinians.
“My heart and soul are with them,” he said in an emotional post-game interview, The AP news reported.
Egypt won its debut in the elimination round of the World Cup by beating Australia 4-2 on penalty kicks after a 1-1 draw in the round of 32 Friday.
The victory comes in Egypt’s fourth World Cup.
A video of Hassan on social media shows him walking around the pitch holding the flag as people chanted “free free Palestine." The video went viral.
Earlier this year Lamine Yamal waved a Palestinian flag during celebrations of the Spanish league title. The act caused backlash from Israel's defense minister, who criticized Barcelona’s teenage star and said his action “incites hate.”
Hassan is not known to be religious or connected to any political group. In the 1980s and 1990s he was adored by the youth, a street footballer who played in the slums.
On Friday he said he was dedicating the game to the “good and noble” Egyptian and Palestinian people.
It wasn’t immediately clear if FIFA would seek to take any action, and it didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. It has previously sought to restrict what it sees as political statements on the pitch.
