In the 65th minute of the match, referee Matthias Jollenbeck halted the game so that Mainz defender Moussa Niakhate could hydrate himself. (Screengrabs) For the first time in the history of the German Bundesliga, a match between Mainz and Augsburg was paused last week when the referee allowed a player to break his Ramadan fast.
In the 65th minute of the match, referee Matthias Jollenbeck halted the game so that Mainz defender Moussa Niakhate could hydrate himself.
Ramadan started at the beginning of April, during which, those partaking must not eat or drink anything during daylight.
Niakhate would drink water from two bottles before proceeding to thank the referee with a handshake.
For the first time in history, a Bundesliga game was stopped for so that a Muslim player could break his fast during the match.
In the game between Augsburg and Mainz 05, the referee stopped the game at sunset so Moussa Niakhaté could take some fluids.
— HD Football (@hdfootballl) April 12, 2022
This gesture would be replicated on Sunday when referee Bastian Dankert would briefly pause RB Leipzig vs Hoffenheim to allow Leipzig’s Mohamed Simakan to rehydrate.
In the Premier League, last season’s match between Leicester City and Crystal Palace was also halted by referee Graham Scott to allow the Foxes’ Wesley Fofana and Palace’s Cheikhou Kouyate to break their fast.
As per the Daily Mail, the director of communications for the German Referee Committee, Lutz Michael Frohlich said, “There is no general instruction in this regard. But ofcourse, we support our referees allowing such drinking breaks during Ramadan at the request of the players.”
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