Premier League and the English Football League (EFL) will again allow brief pauses in matches during Ramadan to enable Muslim players and match officials to break their fast at sunset, continuing a procedure that has been in place since 2021.
Ramadan begins this week and will run for around a month, with Muslims abstaining from food and drink from dawn until sunset.
As confirmed by BBC Sport, during this period in the UK, sunset will fall between roughly 17:00 and 19:00 GMT, meaning only selected weekend fixtures are affected. Saturday matches kicking off at 17:30, and Sunday fixtures starting at 16:30 are the games most likely to see a short stoppage.
As in previous seasons, the pause will only take place at a natural break in play. Referees will not stop the game while the ball is in open play, but will wait for moments such as a goal kick, free kick, or throw-in.
Club captains and match officials will agree before kick-off whether a pause is needed and roughly when it will occur, based on the expected sunset time.
This was first applied in April 2021 during a league match between Leicester City and Crystal Palace. On that evening, Leicester defender Wesley Fofana and Palace midfielder Cheikhou Kouyaté were allowed to take on food and fluids at sunset during a stoppage, setting a working model that has since been reused each Ramadan.
Since then, the practice has been repeated across Premier League and EFL fixtures.
