A Friendly Discussion on Salafi Football Sessions & Tournaments: Perspectives from Supporters & Opponents

✅ Supporter: As-Salāmu ’Aleikum. 🚫 Opponent: Wa’aleikumu As-Salam. Please check this link: (https://t.me/almanhajussalafi/1157) ✅ Supporter: The link you sent refers to football competitions with prizes. However, our weekly football sessions don’t involve any prizes. 🚫 Opponent: If that’s the case, the specific ruling in the link may not directly apply. However, my purpose in sharing it was to highlight the concerns surrounding such activities and to caution against hosting any future football tournaments. ✅ Supporter: It was just a charity football tournament. 🚫 Opponent: While I understand the charitable intentions, hosting such tournaments under the banner of Salafiyyah is problematic. For example, awarding medals and trophies constitutes prizes, which falls into the ruling above. Even when no prizes are involved, these kind of charity projects are still questionable (https://t.me/almanhajussalafi/387). As for the weekly football sessions organised under the masjid, this article is more relevant: (https://torontodawah.com/the-ruling-on-using-entertainment-such-as-soccer-as-means-of-dawah-shaykh-muhammad-nasiruddin-al-albani-and-shaykh-muqbil-bin-hadi-al-wadii/). ✅ Supporter: But we’re not using football as a means of da’wah; it’s simply to foster brotherhood. 🚫 Opponent: Brotherhood is an essential aspect of Salafi da’wah, and fostering it is vital. That’s why we refer to ourselves as Ahlus-Sunnah wal-Jama’ah. However, fostering brotherhood should align with the methods outlined in the Qur'ān and Sunnah, such as: - Extending Salaam. - Exchanging gifts. - Visiting one another for the sake of Allah. - Adhering to the Sunnah while avoiding innovation. - Offering sincere advice (privately and publicly). - Cooperating upon piety - Loving for others what you love for yourself. - Settling disputes based on Qur'an and Sunnah, and avoiding personal boycotts for more than three days. - Overlooking minor mistakes and being patient. - Avoiding sins like backbiting, envy, tale-carrying, and rejoicing in others’ hardships. Etc. Ask yourself, does playing football truly foster brotherhood better than these methods already taught to us? (https://t.me/madrasatuna/2726). ✅ Supporter: Are the means of fostering brotherhood limited to what you’ve mentioned? 🚫 Opponent: Not at all. Sheikh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen رحمه الله explained that ta'leef al-quloob (winning over hearts) is a broad subject. However, he made a clear distinction between permissible means for softening hearts and the restricted means of da’wah. The means of Da’wah must remain grounded in evidence from the Qur'an and Sunnah. (https://t.me/almanhajussalafi/1170) ✅ Supporter: Seeing as this is an issue of differing amongst the scholars, let’s both follow what we believe is correct and leave it at that. 🚫 Opponent: Brother, it’s not as simple as leaving it at that. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever lives after me will see much differing. So adhere to my Sunnah and the Sunnah of the rightly guided caliphs after me. Hold firmly to it and bite onto it with your molar teeth.” This hadith shows us that when scholars differ on a ruling, our duty is to follow the opinions grounded in the Qur'an and Sunnah. Abandoning this principle weakens our connection to the truth. [Extracted from Sheikh Fawzān hafidhahullāh: (https://www.alfawzan.af.org.sa/ar/node/13194)] ✅ Supporter: Are you saying football is haram? 🚫 Opponent: If I said football is haram, then I have been preceded in this: (https://t.me/almanhajussalafi/1156). However, my concern lies in linking football activities to Salafi masajid and institutions. This risks transforming the nature of our da’wah and aligning us with practices more commonly seen in groups like the Ikhwan Al-Muslimeen, who often integrate entertainment into their programs for outreach. (https://t.me/almanhajussalafi/629) ✅ Supporter: How do we separate football from da’wah?