A&H

religious band and arguing whether or not he can wear it

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Freddie Faulkner

New Member
in todays game their was a player who i think was a sikh wearing a small band which he said he cant take off. I told him he had to either take it off or not play as the laws say no jewellery means no jewellery. in the end he took it off and i am wondering weather this was a good decision or weather i should have let him play with it on.
 
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If the band was made of any sort of metal, then it is fair enough to ask him to remove it. I've had this happen a few times and if the player can put a tape or wrist band over it, and I consider it to be ample protection and not a danger to other players, then I'd allow him to keep it on
 
Yes I do. Lots of muslim players wear them here in South Africa. In almost all cases a wrist band over the top of it does the job. Just a matter of common sense.
 
I think you did the right thing, insisting on a miracle of having an irremovable band removed. One player's religion should not endanger the safety of an opponent. Jewelry can't be covered up and I'm not aware of any exceptions to Law 4, other than headcovers
 
The laws have been modified to allow some equipment, such as head coverings. Anything else is a no no, and the player has to take it off.

Look at it another way, Christians will often wear a cross around their neck, would you allow a player to play with this? I would hope not because to do so would be a safety risk to that player or his opponent. We live in a multicultural society and hopefully as further religious requirements become apparent IFAB change the laws, but until such time we can only referee to the laws that are there. And we shouldn't forget that the most important role of the referee is to protect the safety of all players, and we aren't doing this if players are allowed to wear potentially dangerous equipment.
 
CapeTownRef said:
Lots of muslim players wear them here in South Africa.
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I would be surprised - gold is haram (forbidden) for Muslim males and although you might find the occasional one who breaks that rule, I don't think you'll find 'lots' doing it. Perhaps you're mixing up your religions? As the OP stated, it was a Sikh who was wearing the bracelet - Sikhs are required to wear a metal band (usually made of iron) around the wrist as part of their religion, Muslims are not.
 
Freddie Faulkner said:
in todays game their was a player who i think was a sikh wearing a small band which he said he cant take off. I told him he had to either take it off or not play as the laws say no jewellery means no jewellery. in the end he took it off and i am wondering weather this was a good decision or weather i should have let him play with it on.
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100% correct.

If the player was smart, he'd wear a sweatband over it so you don't see it to start with, no reason to even suspect it's there.
There's no leeway for religious items. Safety trumps religion.
CapeTownRef said:
If the band was made of any sort of metal, then it is fair enough to ask him to remove it. I've had this happen a few times and if the player can put a tape or wrist band over it, and I consider it to be ample protection and not a danger to other players, then I'd allow him to keep it on
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Doesn't matter what it's made of. If it's jewellery, it goes. Remember those livestrong type armbands? They're rubber, they go. The material isn't the main problem.

but given the LOTG are explicit, you can't be telling them to put a wristband over it or tape it down.

Jewellery gets removed. Not covered. Same with earrings.

cwyeary said:
Ask him to tape over it.
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Law 4 strongly disagrees there!
 
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I'd be saying to take it off religious or not. I'm not saying they'd be lying, but I'm not knowledgeable enough in the world of religion to know if that's correct or not. If they aren't happy about it, take it up with the FA and maybe they can educate me on the matter but until then, all jewllery is off
 
Even if the religion requires it (eg the Sikh bracelet is a requirement....but so is the dagger and wooden comb. A Christian crucifix is not a requirement), safety trumps that requirement.
 
The laws have been changed to take into account religious requirements, such as head hear. They haven't said that bands can be worn though, so it comes off.
 
Peter Grove said:
I would be surprised - gold is haram (forbidden) for Muslim males and although you might find the occasional one who breaks that rule, I don't think you'll find 'lots' doing it. Perhaps you're mixing up your religions? As the OP stated, it was a Sikh who was wearing the bracelet - Sikhs are required to wear a metal band (usually made of iron) around the wrist as part of their religion, Muslims are not.
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I was not referring to gold. My point was that certain muslim (and non-muslim) players wear a bracelet which contains some metal. As long as they are covered up with a wrist band or any other material that I consider makes it safe to keep on and is not a danger to others, then I'm happy to let then participate in the game. Like I said, just use common sense. I believe that modern soccer boot studs are far more dangerous that a necklace or bracelet.
 
RustyRef said:
The laws have been changed to take into account religious requirements, such as head hear. They haven't said that bands can be worn though, so it comes off.
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It doesn't say that an undervest, ankle socks, swimming trunks or jock straps can be worn either so do we insist that the player removes these as well? Common sense guys!!
 
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