More than just fasting: Muslim soccer stars on the deeper meaning of Ramadan

Moreira experienced difficult moments in France when a coach told Morreira and his teammates that fasting was off the table, despite eight players in the squad being Muslim. "He said that, if we wanted to do Ramadan, we could do it at the end of the season," Moreira recalls.

"He said, 'If you do it, you cannot play for me'." Of course, he couldn't change eight players, so they all played anyway, but it was so weird. It broke something between us and him. Jimmy describes three types of coaches. The first is like the one in Sudan who tried to tell players they couldn't fast at a crucial point in the season; Jimmy pulled that coach aside and warned him: "You can't say that here.

That will put you on the spot, and they're not going to like you.

France

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