Blackburn Rovers becomes first UK football club to host Eid prayers

Thousands went on the pitch to celebrate Eid at the home of the former Premier League champions

Blackburn Rovers has become the first football club in the UK to host Eid prayers as 2,000 people celebrated on the pitch.

Men and women started arriving from 08:30 BST at Ewood Park to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

Extra plastic sheeting had to be put down as more people arrived. Eid gatherings after a month of fasting are normally held in mosques.

The Championship side played at home on Saturday afternoon but lost 3-0.

They became the first football club in the UK to host Eid.

Yasir Sufi, integration manager at the club, said: "We live and breathe, one town, one club, one community.

"An event like this shows this better than anything else.

"It shows that we are all one, no matter who you are or what your identity is, the football club is somewhere where you belong."

Thousands attended the religious event at Ewood Park

Sudan-born Ahmed Khalifa, 37, who moved to Blackburn from the UAE about four months ago, said he was "so happy" to see so many people at the Sky Bet Championship club's ground.

He said: "Eid for Muslims is something very special, gathering all the relatives together. This time, for us especially, we miss our relatives so much.

"So it was a very big deal for us to have this group of people. So happy to see all these people there.

"The people of Blackburn, they all seem like part of a community, but for me coming new to this city - now I'm feeling like a part of the community."

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