I didn’t grow up in a house of football lovers but during Ramadan, when we break fast as a family, I sweet talk my way into switching the channel to whatever live football is on. 

I find myself getting giddy at pointing out which players are fasting to my family members. In a weird way, Ramadan has presented a gateway for my family to take a long overdue interest in football.

But the sport hasn’t always been the most Muslim-friendly space. Gambling sponsors and a prominent drinking culture exist in most footballing corners of the world – turning enjoyment of the game into a bit of an ethical labyrinth for practising Muslims to navigate.

Yet during Ramadan, the sport’s hostility towards Islam becomes even more apparent to me. Look no further than the reports of the French Football Federation refusing to accommodate Muslim players observing Ramadan and the hostility Antonio Rudiger faced for simply posting an Islamic greeting on his Instagram.

Usually, these tensions revolve around fasting – the abstention of food and water from sunrise to sunset. As you can imagine, there have been more than a few managers to have an issue with their athletes forgoing nourishment before a game.

Whether it’s former Nantes' manager Antoine Kombouaré, who last year dropped defender Jaouen Hadjam from three matchday squads after he refused to break his Ramadan fast as per his manager’s request. Going further back, Wigan Athletic striker Amr Zaki alleged that then manager Steve Bruce made him choose between fasting or playing, which led to the Egyptian hiding the fact he was fasting during games.

But over the last few years, things have started to change. The Premier League, the Eredivisie and the Bundesliga have paused games to allow Muslim players to break their fast – a small but validating gesture for Muslim spectators and an educational moment for non-Muslims. It sows the seed of intrigue to ask a Muslim friend or colleague about the holy month. The “not even water?!” to “what were they doing before this pause was introduced?” pipeline has been touching, and amusing, to see unfold.

That aspect of allyship plays out in the most beautiful ways. Wolves midfielder João Gomes is a devout Christian but upon learning about Ramadan through his team-mate Rayan Ait-Nouri, decided he would fast with the Algerian international as a show of solidarity. There are so many more examples of this happening within football at all levels and they never fail to make my heart swell. It’s hard to think that this sense of community within the sport isn’t a direct result of how much football has been willing to learn.

For Muslims, Ramadan represents much more than not eating or drinking. It’s a period of discipline, recalibration and self-improvement. An opportunity to take stock and better yourself in every aspect of your life. It can be a challenging time of year, but also a deeply rewarding one. It’s been incredibly gratifying to see Muslim ballers at all levels thrive in these conditions. 

It’s evidence to all that Ramadan is more a spiritual journey than a physical one. The foregoing of food and water for up to 14 hours might seem like an extremely difficult task on its own – but throw in 90 minutes of lung-busting channel runs and tracking back and it appears near impossible. 

This is why mental and spiritual fortitude are of utmost importance during these 30 days. It’s a reminder of what the less fortunate go through on a regular basis. It’s a reinforcement of the Islamic doctrine that God does not burden a soul with more than it can bear. But more pertinently, it’s proof of how great a space football can be when it chooses to be inclusive.

We all saw how Karim Benzema scored a hat-trick against Chelsea in the 2022 Champions League quarter-finals despite breaking his fast just 13 minutes before kick-off. And when N’Golo Kanté put up Man Of The Match performances in both legs of the semi-finals against Madrid the season before, nullifying Luka Modrić and Toni Kroos in the process. Even more recently, Moussa Diaby lashing a shot into the top corner against Wolves just minutes before reasoning with a few dates and a banana on the touchline. 

These are the stories that make the sport so rich. But it is these triumphs that Muslims will tell their children and grandchildren for generations to come - defying the notion that those fasting cannot and should not keep pace with the best. To dominate on the elite stages with nothing but proverbial fire in their belly and contentment in their hearts.

Even as lifelong Muslims, my family and I watched on in awe as the likes of Rayan Ait-Nouri chased down loose balls. In those seemingly insignificant moments, these players represent the best of us and we cheer their every involvement as if they’ve bagged a last minute winner. You might think a player eating a date on the touchline is normal at this point. But the Islamic significance of breaking your fast with one – and doing so on TV – is a heartwarming slice of representation that’s enough to make any Muslim smile.

In the space of 15 years, football has gone from a place where virtually every player felt pressured to avoid fasting, to now embracing the month with tailored diets and mid-game pauses. While there still an undercurrent of resistance to Islam in football, to think of how far the sport’s understanding of Ramadan has come is cause for optimism.

@AhmedShooble