A wonderful gesture from Blackburn
Blackburn Rovers have become the first club in the United Kingdom to open their stadium to host Eid prayers.
Over 2,000 attended Ewood Park
The Championship club opened the doors at Ewood Park to allow over 2,000 Muslims, with men and women arriving from as early as 8:30am, to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Due to the high volume of people attending, extra plastic sheets had to be put down to accommodate for everyone, with Eid gatherings following the month of fasting usually held in mosques.
Blackburn’s act of kindness was the first time any club in the UK had enabled Muslims to perform their Eid prayers and the club’s integration manager, Yasir Sufi explained why they chose to do so.
“We live and breathe, one town, one club, one community,” she told the BBC.
“An event like this shows this better than anything else. It shows that we are all one, no matter who you are or what your identity is, the football club is somewhere where you belong.”
🌙 Eid Mubarak from everyone at Blackburn Rovers.
This morning #Rovers became the first football club in the country to host Eid prayers on the pitch. 💙#EidMubarak 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/Pw0LHkqjg5
— Blackburn Rovers (@Rovers) May 2, 2022
‘The people of Blackburn, they all seem like part of a community’
Ahmed Khalifa, who was born in Sudan but moved to Blackburn from the United Arab Emirates four months ago admitted he was “happy” to see so many people come to pray at Ewood Park.
“Eid for Muslims is something very special, gathering all the relatives together. This time, for us especially, we miss our relatives so much,” Khalifa said.
“So it was a very big deal for us to have this group of people. So happy to see all these people there.
“The people of Blackburn, they all seem like part of a community, but for me coming new to this city – now I’m feeling like a part of the community.”
⚽️ = the beautiful game. 💙#Rovers | #EidMubarak 🔵⚪️ pic.twitter.com/YycyQzaMgO
— Blackburn Rovers (@Rovers) May 2, 2022
Related links:
- Sadio Mane reveals how Liverpool have helped Muslim players during Ramadan
- History made in Bundesliga as Mainz 05 defender is allowed to break Ramadan fast
- Jake Humphrey responds after backlash to ‘tone deaf’ Newcastle comment
