The Premier referees’ association: ‘The competitions must be interrupted for those who fast for Ramadan’

Salah, Mahrez, Kanté, Koulibaly and many others. England is a pool of diversity, which is also reflected in the Premier League. And as such the sensitivity to certain issues is much stronger. For this reason, the Pgmol, the British association of referees, has released a series of guidelines for match officials to stop the game to allow Muslim players who adhere to Ramadan to interrupt the abstinence of water and food to be observed from dawn to dusk. They were also invited to find out before kick-off if there are athletes who might need a break during the matches, so as to agree on the most suitable moment together with the teams. From 22 March to 21 April, in fact, we enter the ninth month of the Islamic calendar which includes this period of fasting. Those who decide to conform to the religious precept may run into some health problems mainly due to dehydration. In this way, it will be possible to limit the risk.

Previous

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Until now, breaks during matches had to take place at the request of the formations or at the latest at the discretion of the referees and players on the spot. Leicester have been involved in more circumstances, such as against Southampton or Roma last year, as well as the match between Burnley and the Saints for Elyounoussi and Valery. The most high-sounding case dates back to two seasons ago, when it was Vicente Guaita, goalkeeper of Crystal Palace, who did not immediately execute a goal kick to give the opportunity to the opponents of the Foxes, Fofana and Kouyaté, to refresh themselves; the captains had talked about it in the locker room and there was immediate availability for the break. A behavior that was particularly appreciated and that helped to give relevance to the phenomenon.

The first stop

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The first match in which the break could occur according to these indications is Leeds-Liverpool on April 17th. Sunset is expected at 8.10pm, ten minutes after kick-off, and Salah could be on the pitch. It could also happen on the 21st of the same month, the last evening of Ramadan, when Arsenal and Southampton play at 8pm and in this case too the sun will set shortly after.