The stadium was packed hours before kick-off. Those unable to squeeze into the 7,000-seat stadium climbed onto the rooftops of adjacent apartment buildings draped with Palestinian flags. Even before kickoff, families sent confetti drifting down onto the soccer field in celebration.

Scores of Palestinian shabab pressed against the fence to get a look at their team taking to the field for the first time. Dozens more scrambled atop a metal warehouse roof overlooking the game.

Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad was there to watch. Sitting next to him was the American consul general and, next to him, bizarrely enough, Israeli-Russian tycoon Arkadi Gaydamak, the man once dubbed "the Ross Perot of Israel," and, not coincidentally, a long shot candidate for Jerusalem mayor (there, some observers cynically suggested, trying to win the "Arab vote").

The stadium crowd, made up mostly of young Palestinian men, had come to be part of history:

They were here to be part of the first internationally-blessed home Palestinian soccer game.

When the Palestinian national team took to their new home field on Sunday night, the stadium broke out in an euphoric celebration of chants, cheers, drumming and screams.

"Watch. Look. See what Palestine is going to do," they chanted in unison.

And (translated very liberally): "From the north, to the south, Palestine shakes the ground."

"We have to defend our flag," Palestinian coach Izzat Hamza said before kick-off.

The Palestinian players made a circle at center field, dropped to their knees in prayer, kissed the turf and launched a new era in Palestinian sports. (You can see a nice photo of the scene here.)

Palestinian forward Ahmed Kashkash got the team's new era off to a jubilant start by scoring first with a dramatic goal that set off a wild round of celebration in the stands.

The Palestinian team held the lead until early in the second half when Jordan evened the score, which set off predictable fan grumbling.

From then on, the Palestinian team adopted the long-established soccer fan role of coaching the team from the stands.

"Gogogogogo!" fans shouted at Palestinian players who failed to turn opportunities into goals.

Still, it seemed somehow fitting that the game against Jordan ended in a 1-1 draw.

Palestine earned the honor of scoring first in their first official FIFA home game in the West Bank. But both Middle East teams retained their honor with a status-quo 1-1 tie.

The game was also remarkable for its timeliness: Getting things to start on time in the West Bank is virtually impossible, so the on-time 5:30 p.m. kickoff was a triumph for the Palestinian Authority all on its own.

The match was also a showcase of sorts for another team on the field: The Palestinian security forces.

Dozens of Palestinian police, decked out in new riot gear, stood in formation in one corner of the field.

The US, EU, Jordan and other outside donors are steadily working to train and equip the Palestinian security forces, which continue to expand their areas of operation. (Just this weekend, Palestinian security forces were deployed in Hebron.)

Strutting around on the pitch was the hero of the day: Jibril Rajoub, the longtime security adviser to Yasser Arafat who has set aside his military career to lead the Palestinian Soccer Association that succeeded in refurbishing the stadium to international standards, paving the way for the first official FIFA home game.

OK, the Palestinian team may rank 180th in the world, but they have at least launched their road to the FIFA World Cup with a feisty home game.

Now the big question remains: Which will come first? A Palestinian FIFA World Cup or an internationally-blessed independent Palestinian state?