The Federal Commission of Referees, which depends on the Federation, advances the “principle of neutrality of football on the places of practice”.
By Martin Pereira (with AFP)
© Johan BEN AZZOUZ / MAXPPP / PHOTOPQR / VOICE OF THE NORTH
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Lhe French Football Federation has decided: interrupting a meeting to allow Muslims to break the fast during this period of Ramadan is prohibited. The body, through the Federal Commission of Referees (CFA), puts forward the “principle of neutrality of football at the places of practice” to explain itself, according to BFMTV.
And the FFF has decided to be strict: “Anyone violating these provisions will be subject to disciplinary and/or criminal proceedings”, recalling that in these competitions, it is prohibited “any speech or posting of a political, ideological, religious or union”.
An email has been sent to the referees to remind them of this ban. It reads: “It has been brought to the attention of the Federation of match interruptions following the breaking of the Ramadan fast, begins the email. These interruptions do not respect the provisions of the statutes of the FFF. […] The Federation and its decentralized bodies, as bodies charged with a public service mission delegated by the State, defend the fundamental values of the French Republic and must implement the means to prevent any discrimination or violation of the dignity of a person, in particular because […] of his political and religious beliefs. »READ ALSO Monday’s tackle – France have an incredible pool, but…
“The idea is that there is a time for everything. A time to play sports, a time to practice your religion, ”explains Éric Borghini, president of the Federal Commission of Referees at the FFF, to Agence France-Presse. According to him, the FFF has been informed that “a number of amateur-level matches have been stopped to allow fasting players to hydrate” – and this, “without the regulations allowing it”, has he added, recalling “the scrupulous application of the first article of the statutes of the Federation on the demanding respect for the principle of secularism in football”.
The English counter-example
In England, an opposite decision was taken by the arbitration bodies: breaks will be made during Premier League matches to allow Muslim players to break the fast during the month of Ramadan, which began on March 22.
“We know England, we know that they are more open than us on the subject and it always has been. It would be nice if France did, but nobody cares if they don’t. Because we are not in a Muslim country. You have to accept the country in which you live, ”reacted Didier Digard, the Nice coach, when asked about this at a press conference on Friday.READ ALSO Kylian Mbappé, Noël Le Graët, Benzema… Deschamps confides in his life at the head of the Blues
In Nice, many Muslim players celebrate Ramadan and, according to Digard, this is not a problem. “We support them as best we can. We have a high quality performance division. They are monitored in terms of food and hydration. They’re doing it [le jeûne, NDLR] out of conviction and that makes things a lot easier,” he said.
Ramadan began on the evening of Wednesday March 22 and will end on Friday April 21.