The Guardian corrects Sydney stadium jersey story after misidentifying Palestinian shirt as club kit

The Guardian has amended its reporting on a Sydney A-League gate incident after initially presenting a teenager’s shirt as a legitimate football jersey, before later acknowledging it was not affiliated with any club at all.

The original article described a 15-year-old girl being denied entry to Allianz Stadium while wearing what readers were led to believe was the kit of Club Deportivo Palestino, a professional side that plays in Chile’s top division. That framing suggested the shirt was a recognisable football jersey comparable to those commonly worn by fans inside Australian stadiums.

In a quiet amendment appended after publication, the paper conceded that this was incorrect. The shirt was not linked to any club or team, but was instead a generic item sold online bearing the word “Palestine” and the Palestinian flag colours. The correction substantially alters the factual basis of the story, shifting it from a dispute over a football club’s colours to the wearing of explicitly political symbolism at a match governed by venue rules that restrict political messaging.

That distinction matters. Stadium entry conditions for the A-League prohibit unauthorised political logos and signage, but make no reference to banning football club jerseys from overseas leagues. By initially framing the shirt as legitimate sporting attire, the article implied inconsistent or discriminatory enforcement by security staff, before later clarifying that the item fell outside normal club apparel entirely.

As with many post-publication corrections, the amendment restores technical accuracy but arrives after the initial narrative had circulated widely. Readers who encountered the first version were left with the impression that a recognised football jersey had been treated as suspect, rather than a political garment being assessed under stadium rules.