Eagles host Community Iftar Event

Ramadan marks the beginning of the ninth month of the Islamic calendar, when the Qur’an is believed to have been revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. It is a time of deep spiritual reflection for all who observe.

During Ramadan, Muslims will fast during daylight hours. Iftar is the name for the meal eaten by Muslims at sunset to break their daily fast.

On Friday evening, before the Eagles Men’s game against Toulouse, The Eagles Foundation welcomed over 50 people from community partners and local schools who have engaged with the club’s charitable arm over recent months. The Eagles have become just the second club in the UK to hold an Iftar event, and the first to do so at a match.

Eagles Foundation Inclusion Officer, Jack Pemberton, said: “We were absolutely delighted to open our doors to the community for this historic Iftar. Over recent months we’ve worked closely with DESA (Darnall Education and Sports Academy), Phillimore Primary School and Oasis Academy, so hosting an Iftar and inviting those young people and their families that have been working with us - at what is such a special time in the Islamic faith - was really important and exciting for both the Club and the Foundation. People of different faiths and from different backgrounds coming together for an event like this is fantastic.

We want to make sure that Eagles' match days and the sport of rugby league is open and welcoming of everyone.”

Food for the event was kindly donated by local family-owned restaurant group, Indus.

In 2024, like the Eagles, Indus will celebrate the 40th anniversary of their founding in Attercliffe, just a stone’s throw away from Olympic Legacy Park. Over the last four decades, Indus have expanded in South Yorkshire, opening a further restaurant in Conisbrough, Cafe Indus in Sheffield City Centre and, more recently, Indus Catering which became the fourth jewel in the Indus crown.

Indus founder, Munir Ahmed, said: “We are a family business with core values to unite people to break bread and indulge in the most delicious dishes. Another of our core values is to help the community and support local organisations. When The Eagles Foundation contacted Indus to help with their community Iftar, it was an automatic yes - understanding that it would be a historic event, the first time an Iftar has taken place at a game of rugby league, and just the second time in history a rugby league club had hosted an Iftar. Indus is very proud to support such an amazing milestone in sporting history.”

The Eagles Foundation would like to thank Mr Ahmed and Indus for their incredible gesture and support of the event. We also wish to thank Kamran Din and Abdul Malik of local partners DESA (Darnall Education and Sports Academy) for their continued support and guidance on the event.

Thanks also to Sheffield Sharks and the Canon Medical Arena for opening up their spaces to us for Maghrib prayer ahead of the game on Friday evening.

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