London FA and Middlesex FA partnered with London Tigers and Pro Touch SA to host a Ramadan tournament in March 2024 to celebrate Ramadan.

The event started at Rectory Park (Home of Middlesex FA) at 5pm with afternoon prayers. This was then followed by a panel discussion which included Mesba Ahmed (London Tigers), Abdul Razak (London Tigers), Ash Rahman (Pro Touch SA) and Zahid Hossain (Pro Touch SA) discussing the impact their clubs and organisations have on the community. They shared powerful stories of the people behind the scenes that run everything they deliver and how they have overcome barriers to ensure they meaningfully serve the community. 

We were also joined by Mayor of Ealing, Cllr Hitesh Tailor who shared kind words with everyone and emphasised how Ramadhan is a time for community, togetherness and generosity.

At 6:34pm, over 150 people broke their fast together with meals provided by All Seasons Foods. The evening prayer (Maghrib) was performed on the pitch at Rectory Park. 

Later all teams got themselves ready for an evening tournament under the floodlights. A total of 12 teams competed for the inaugural cup in a highly competitive battle. Winners in Group A  - Pro Touch SA, and Winners of Group B – Revive FC fought it out in a winner takes all final, with Revive FC coming up as 3-1 winners.  They took home the trophy and their defender (Mohammed Abdur Rahman) was awarded player of the Tournament by the referees.

Nayim Ahmed, London FA & Middlesex FA Volunteer Development Officer said: "I would like to thank all the staff at London FA & Middlesex FA who enabled this very special event and give a huge shoutout to our referees: Shady Rezk, Wassem Ben Salem, Mohammed Muji, and Mohammed Bettache. The values of Ramadan perfectly align with the values of football. 

"We set out to bring the community together in a fun football tournament and were overwhelmed by the interest to be part of this. 150 people came together to break their fast and play football. The power of festivals like this allows us to design a day with the needs of a specific group in mind.

"Our grassroots clubs (Pro Touch SA and London Tigers) provided us with the insight to ensure that we designed a day that was really meaningful for the Muslim community in London. The breaking of fast and praying together was a really special moment to embrace and celebrate diversity, inclusion and community. 

"We really hope to deliver more festivals to celebrate and mark religious holidays and potentially expand the Ramadan tournament in the future."

Ramadan Mubarak and Eid Mubarak to our grassroots football community!