Jumu’ah mubarak! The Friday Fill-in is The Athletic Ummah’s weekly news roundup. If you have a story or athlete you’d like to pitch for it, email us at TheAthleticUmmah@gmail.com.
The Headlines
Saudi Arabia eyes $30 billion stake in Indian cricket: Saudi Arabia has expressed interest in buying a $30 billion stake in the Indian Premier League, the world’s richest cricket league, according to a report by Bloomberg News. In talks between Mohammed bin Salman’s advisors and the Indian government, it was revealed that Saudi Arabia could invest as much as $5 billion into the league while also leading an expansion into other countries.
Iraqi club stuns Benzema’s Al-Ittihad in Asian Champions League: Baghdad-based football club Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya shocked Saudi giants Al-Ittihad — who were led by superstars Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kanté — by a 2-0 score in the AFC Champions League group stage. Ali Jasim and Mohannad Abdul-Raheem scored the goals to give the 7-time Iraq Stars League champions a surprising victory in Erbil, Iraq. The win moved Al-Quwa Al-Jawiya within two points of Group C leaders Al-Ittihad with two group stage games to go.
Islam Makhachev seizes UFC’s No. 1 pound-for-pound ranking: Russian UFC fighter Islam Makhachev has moved into the No. 1 spot in the men’s pound-for-pound rankings, 17 days after a knockout victory over Alexander Volkanovski at UFC 294. Makhachev, who currently holds the UFC’s Lightweight title, unseated heavyweight champion Jon Jones, who had held the No. 1 ranking since March.
What You Might’ve Missed
Most footballers dream of getting called up to their national team. But for some Afghan players, their national team has become a source of frustration recently — and this week, several of them said they’ve had enough.
18 players from Afghanistan’s men’s national team, including three who play overseas, are boycotting a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Qatar next week in protest of what they describe as substandard treatment and serious corruption by the Afghanistan Football Federation, the sport’s governing body in Afghanistan.
This week, a letter signed by three overseas-based players, including Noor Husin and captain Farshad Noor, was sent to FIFA and the AFC outlining their complaints. It demands FIFA investigates allegations that senior AFF officials have been misappropriating funds that are supposed to be invested in developing football in the country.
“Every year our federation gets financial support from Fifa and from the AFC,” said Faysal Shayesteh, who also signed the letter. “We want to show a positive Afghanistan to the world so we are asking FIFA to stop supporting our federation financially because the money is going into the pockets of a gang who is ruling football in the country.”
Behram Siddiqui, the AFF’s general secretary, denied the allegations. He told The Guardian that since the regime transition in Aug. 2021, there has been no movement of funds from FIFA or any external sources to the AFF’s bank account. “Therefore, any previous actions concerning this issue are not within my knowledge,” he added.
A FIFA spokesperson said, “FIFA was informed of these allegations very recently and is currently looking into the matter.”
In light of the boycott, a squad of largely local-based players has been selected for Afghanistan’s qualifier against Qatar, which will take place in Saudi Arabia after the AFF signed a deal for the country to host its home matches.
Muslim “Athletes” of the Week
For this edition of the Muslim Athletes of the Week segment, I’m stretching the definition of “athlete” because I want to highlight a story of fans coming together to fulfill a young boy’s dream.
It has been a horrifying month for Gazans. More than 11,000 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, including more than 4,100 children.
Many of those Palestinians are anxious about whether they’ll wake up the next day as Israel brutally bombards Gaza, including refugee camps and ambulances.
Ali is one of those children living in fear. He is a 14-year-old Liverpool fan in Gaza, and he’s scared of getting killed by Israel’s offensive before he has a chance to visit Anfield, Liverpool’s stadium.
“Ali is so crazy about Liverpool, he’s so obsessed with Liverpool,” Abubaker, his older brother, told BBC. “He watches every game, he loves the players, he loves Salah, he loves everyone.”
“It’s his dream to get to Anfield.”
To make Ali’s dream come true, Abubaker reached out to Ben, admin and host of The Anfield Talk podcast, to arrange a surprise for his brother. He knew he couldn’t physically take his brother to Anfield, but he asked if a photo of his brother could be taken instead.
Ben agreed. He arranged for his friend Sajad to print out a photo of Ali and take it to famous landmarks around the ground.
Sajad photographed Ali’s framed picture, alongside Liverpool and Palestine scarves. The photos were sent to Abubaker, who shared them with his brother.
“He said that he hasn’t stopped smiling, and that for a few moments they as a family completely forgot about the bombs and that it’s a historic moment in their family history,” Ben said.
Palestinians in Gaza don’t have a lot to smile about these days, so it’s inspiring to see fans thousands of kilometres away band together to give a young Gazan some joy. For this reason, they’re The Athletic Ummah’s Muslim Athletes of the Week.
Who’s That Athlete?
“Who’s That Athlete?” is our weekly quiz, where we give you three hints about a Muslim athlete and you have to guess who that athlete is.
Last week’s answer was UFC icon Khabib Nurmagomedov. Here are this week’s hints:
-I won a bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics
-I’ve been a member of the United States National Fencing Team since 2010.
-I am the first hijabi to compete for the U.S. in the Olympics.
Who’s That Athlete? Let us know on Instagram (the.athletic.ummah) before we reveal the answer in next week’s Friday Fill-In.
[…] Last week’s answer was American fencing legend Ibtihaj Muhammad. Here are this week’s hints: […]
[…] Since launching The Athletic Ummah in late Oct. 2023, we’ve tried to commend as many athletes for backing the Palestinian cause as possible, from footballers who’ve voiced their support for Palestine to fans coming together to make a Palestinian kid’s dream come true. […]