Sport in Islam and Muslim Communities Project

Co-authored with Professor Ian P. Henry (Loughborough University), this article traces the diffusion and transformation of football in Algeria from the colonial period through to the post-socialist market economy era — examining how football’s meaning and function shifted at each political conjuncture. The paper’s central analytical contribution is a five-phase periodisation framework mapping the changing role of sport in Algerian society:

1926–57 (Colonialism): Football progressively appropriated by the nationalist movement as an instrument of anti-colonial subversion and political expression.

1954–62 (Revolution): The FLN football team (1958) internationalised the Algerian cause for independence — one of the most historically significant deployments of sport diplomacy in the Global South.

1962–88 (FLN single-party state): Football deployed as a tool of nation-state building, socialist legitimation, and pan-African solidarity under official amateurism.

1988–92 (Transition): Football stadiums become arenas of political agitation and social protest coinciding with Algeria’s opening toward multipartyism and the rise of political Islam (FIS). The paper examines how sport became a contested terrain between secular state nationalism and Islamist movements.

From 1992 (Market economy): Commercial sport in a locally specific Algerian form, shaped by the legacy of the Black Decade and globalisation pressures.

This foundational chapter distinguishes between two types of inquiry: (a) sport in Islam — examining modern sport through the lens of Islamic jurisprudence and the Qur’an/Sunnah; and (b) sport in Muslim societies — a sociological and postcolonial examination of sport across heterogeneous Muslim nation-states.

Key argument 1 — Ontological distinction: Islamic legal judgments on sport depend on purpose, individual and societal benefit, type of sporting activity, and cultural setting. In Islam, everything is permitted except what is explicitly forbidden by an undisputed text — creating a wide space for ijtihad (independent reasoning).

Key argument 2 — Heterogeneity of Muslim states: The chapter maps Muslim countries from revolutionary-modernist (Tunisia, Algeria, Turkey) to conservative-theocratic (Iran, Afghanistan) to constitutional monarchies (Qatar, Saudi Arabia), arguing against any monolithic reading of “Islam and sport”.

Key argument 3 — Sport in Islam in the West: Muslim communities in Europe face demands to reconcile Islamic exigencies (fasting, dress code, women-only facilities) with secular Western sport structures — raising questions of citizenship, integration, and minority jurisprudence (fiqh al-aqalliyyat).

This article investigates how modern sport — as a product of Western modernity and a symbol of globalisation — both shapes and reflects changes in the Muslim world. Three case studies frame the argument:

Case 1 — Sport, politics and the postcolonial era: From GANEFO (1963, Indonesia) to the Gulf’s mega-event investments (Bahrain F1, Dubai World Cup, Qatar 2006 Asian Games), the article traces sport’s function from anti-colonial instrument to commercial nation-branding tool.

Case 2 — Sport and the condition of women in Muslim societies: From Nawal Moutawakel’s 1984 gold medal to the Islamic Women Games (1993), the article analyses how women’s sport participation has become a proxy for measuring “progress” and “secularisation” in Muslim societies — a framework the article critically interrogates.

Case 3 — The Islamic Solidarity Games (2005): The first ever Islamic Solidarity Games in Saudi Arabia, held post-9/11, are analysed as an attempt to rebuild pan-Islamic unity and reframe the global image of Muslim countries as moderate and open.

Central argument: The Muslim world’s engagement with sport is not a simple story of Westernisation but a complex negotiation between global and local, modernity and authenticity.

This paper undertakes a comparative analysis of international media accounts — Western (English, French), Arab (Arabic), Iranian, and Chinese — regarding approximately 14 veiled Muslim athletes who competed at Beijing 2008, including Egyptian fencer Shaimaa El Gammal, Bahraini sprinter Roqaya Al-Ghasara, Afghan sprinter Robina Muqimyar, and Iranian rower Homa Hosseini.

Key argument 1 — Western secular media: Framed the hijab as incompatible with Olympic universalist values, depicting it as either a sign of oppression or as “invasive” political and religious propaganda (particularly from Iran). The IOC was accused of double standards.

Key argument 2 — Iranian and Arab press: Celebrated veiled athletes as disproving Western stereotypes, arguing there is no inherent incompatibility between Islamic devotion and elite athletic achievement. The hijab was presented as empowerment, not obstacle.

Key argument 3 — The “commercialised hijab” debate: Al-Ghasara’s Australian-designed “hijood” generated debate about whether sportswear can be simultaneously Islamic and commercial. French media distinguished her outfit from Cathy Freeman’s Sydney hood: “aerodynamic, not religious.”

Key argument 4 — Chinese media: Used the Games’ motto “One World, One Dream” to present Al-Ghasara’s performance as a symbol of civilisational bridge-building, while also addressing the Uygur Muslim community domestically.

Theoretical framework: Orientalism (Said), postcolonial theory, and feminist media studies are deployed to challenge Western condescension toward Muslim women’s autonomous choices.

Using Arkoun’s concept of “the crisis of meanings,” this article examines how misconceptions about Islam’s role in Europe distort the discourse on sport, immigration, and integration. France is the principal case study.

Key argument 1 — Religion in post-secular Europe: Drawing on Habermas, Touraine, and Arkoun, the paper argues that sport is a public space where the tension between “secularism” and “post-secular” recognition of religious identity is played out. Touraine’s distinction between communautarisme (self-segregation) and legitimate “cultural rights” is central.

Key argument 2 — Typology of Muslim identity: The paper presents a six-category typology of Muslim identity in Europe (Ritualised, Nationalist, Traditionalist, Reformist, Neo-traditionalist, Secular) — arguing against any monolithic reading of “the Muslim community.”

Key argument 3 — Three sport incidents as prisms: Zidane’s headbutt at the 2006 World Cup (read through Orientalist frames of “Muslim irrationality”); the booing of La Marseillaise at France–Tunisia (2008); and the halal meals scandal in the French national team (2010) are analysed as illustrations of the “crisis of meanings.”

Key argument 4 — Reverse migration: North African-origin athletes in Europe choosing to represent Algeria, Tunisia, or Morocco face a double bind of contested loyalty — questioned in both their country of birth and country of origin.

Co-authored with Professor Ian P. Henry, this chapter critically deconstructs how British sport policy and welfare discourse frames Muslim communities as a “problem” to be managed, drawing on empirical case studies from Leicester and Birmingham.

Key argument 1 — Reductive framing: Mainstream policy and media discourse reduces the question of Muslim sporting needs to a security or integration problem, overlooking the heterogeneity of Muslim communities and the structural barriers (poverty, discrimination, language) that are not religion-specific.

Key argument 2 — Sport as citizenship arena: For Muslim communities in the UK, sport is a field to “conquer” in order to reconcile multiple identities. For conservative-nationalist movements, sport is a public (secular) space to safeguard from the “over-visibility” of Islamic identity.

Key argument 3 — Policy implications: The chapter calls for sport welfare policies that engage with the actual diversity of Muslim communities rather than applying culturalist assumptions about sport and religiosity. It highlights the need to separate structural exclusion from cultural or religious difference.

Written in the wake of the 2011 Arab Spring, this chapter examines sport as a contested terrain during Tunisia’s political transition under the Islamist party Ennahda (2012–2014).

Key argument 1 — Sport and the new power dynamics: After decades of being weaponised by the Ben Ali regime to project an image of modernity, sport becomes a new battleground between secular forces (who see it as a symbol of secular Tunisia) and Islamist movements (who seek to re-Islamise society).

Key argument 2 — El-Melouli and Ramadan: Gold medallist Oussama El-Melouli was targeted by Salafi Jihadi group Ansar Al-Sharia for drinking water during Ramadan in the 10km race. A Facebook page called for his citizenship to be stripped. The paper analyses this as an illustration of sport as a proxy for debates about secularisation and religiosity.

Key argument 3 — Habiba Ghribi’s contested body: Silver medallist Ghribi faced demands for her citizenship to be revoked for competing in “indecent attire.” Her body becomes a symbolic battlefield between Islamists (who condemn her shorts) and secular feminists (who celebrate her victory as a defiance of Islamisation).

Key argument 4 — Ennahda’s tactical positioning: The Ennahda-led government strategically nominated former Al-Jazeera Sport analyst Tariq Diab as Minister of Sport — a move to reassure the large football-supporting electorate while distancing the party from Salafi extremism.

This edited volume brings together 14 contributions from scholars across sport sociology, anthropology, Islamic studies, and political science to examine sport in Muslim-majority countries and among Muslim minorities in the West, across 8 countries including Germany, Norway, Turkey, Palestine, Tunisia, Malaysia, the UK, and Italy.

Part I — Understanding Sport in Islam: Provides the theological and jurisprudential framework for the entire volume. Examines the Islamic conception of sport participation and its complex relations with modern secular sport.

Part II — Gender, Body and Culture: Examines barriers Muslim girls face in Germany; tomboyism and gender identity among British Muslim women; Erd&oğan;’s gender politics in Turkish sport; and football, war and masculinities in the Gaza Strip.

Part III — Sport and Politics of Identity: Covers sport in Tunisia’s post-Arab Spring transition (Amara); women’s bodies and sport in Turkey; Islam and rehabilitation of British-Muslim ex-offenders through boxing; and Islamophobia in Italian football through the lens of Algerian-Italian novelist Amara Lakhous.

Part IV — Sport Development and Sport for Development: Examines sport integration discourse in Norway; Islamic and halal sport marketing (Bodet & Amara); sport policy and Islam in Malaysia; and Muslim footballers as sport diplomats of faith.

This chapter examines the emerging field of “Islamic marketing” in relation to sport, interrogating whether marketing — rooted in free-market capitalism and consumerism — can be genuinely reconciled with Islamic ethics.

Key argument 1 — Marketing and Islamic ethics: The chapter asks whether Islamic marketing is an oxymoron, since marketing promotes consumerism, while Islam prioritises collective welfare, prohibition of usury (riba), and temperance. The growing Muslim consumer market (1.8 billion people; global halal industry valued at US$547 billion) makes this a commercially urgent question.

Key argument 2 — Haram sport marketing: Case studies include: Frederic Kanoute’s refusal to wear a gambling sponsor’s shirt at Seville FC; Papiss Cissé’s dispute with Newcastle FC over the Wonga payday loan logo; Faward Ahmed refusing alcohol sponsorship on the Australian cricket team; and Qatar’s dilemma over Budweiser’s FIFA World Cup sponsorship.

Key argument 3 — Halal sport marketing: Examines the growing halal beer market (Barbican, Laziza, Holsten non-alcoholic), the “halalisation” of global brands (Nike, Colgate), and Gulf state investments in global sport (Real Madrid, PSG, Manchester City) as a form of “Islamic” soft power marketing.

Key argument 4 — The paradox: Is halal sport marketing not the “Trojan horse” of Western consumerist ideology, using Islamic branding to expand a fundamentally non-Islamic consumer culture?

Cet article examine la Coupe du monde 2022 de la FIFA au Qatar comme un prisme révélateur des tensions entre sport, religion, modernité et identité dans le monde musulman.

Argument central — Football comme quasi-religion: De l’Iglesia Maradoniana aux célébrations spirituelles de Mohammed Salah (Sujud après chaque but) en passant par les stades-sanctuaires comme Anfield et Maracanã, le football emprunte à la religion ses rituels, ses communautés et ses symboles.

Partie 1 — Le Qatar pays hôte musulman: Le Qatar a dû négocier entre les exigences commerciales du tournoi (alcool, droits LGBT+, culture des supporters) et les valeurs islamiques locales. L’article analyse la décision de ne pas autoriser la vente d’alcool dans les stades, la gestion des manifestations LGBT+, et les déclarations controversées de l’ambassadeur Mohammed Aboutrika.

Partie 2 — Pays musulmans et sécularisation: La participation du Maroc, de la Tunisie, de l’Iràn et de l’Arabie saoudite illustre différentes trajectoires entre islam d’État, islamisme politique, et réforme. La pression sur les joueurs iraniens de prendre position face aux protestations post-Mahsa Amini est analysée.

Partie 3 — Joueurs professionnels musulmans: Des joueurs comme Sadio Mané, Achraf Hakimi et Mohamed Salah naviguent entre identité religieuse, contrats de club, sponsors et pressions des réseaux sociaux. L’article examine comment l’expression publique de la foi islamique peut réduire l’islamophobie (référence à l’étude Mousa sur Salah et la baisse des crimes de haine à Liverpool de 16%).