Professional football player as a career

26-12-2005 | IslamWeb

Question:

Is money from playing football Haraam for example you are a Muslim man and become a professional football player the money you receive is it Haraam or not?

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Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger. We ask Allaah to exalt his mention as well as that of his family and all his companions.

 

As far as we know, there is no religious harm in the following:

1)     For a player to take money from his club according to the agreement [between him and them].

2)     For a player to take sport as a career in a non-Muslim country.

The above are forms of permissible work, and the person who performs this work is entitled to take the salary that is agreed upon but the following matters should be mentioned.

1)     Playing or taking sport as a career should not lead to neglecting or abandoning a religious obligation or lead to a forbidden matter.

2)     If the money that is taken from a Muslim country is taken from public money, then it is not permissible to take it as public money should not be spent on players, but it should be spent on necessities. So, whoever takes this money, he has taken it without a right.

3)     A Muslim should be far above this kind of income, as it is a kind of despised income. The Prophet said: "The income of a cupper is abhorrent." [Ibn Maajah]; it is abhorrent even though people benefit from cupping. So a person should take a job which benefits him and benefits his society. Sport has become a target in itself and a means of entertaining people [and distracting them from their religious obligations and what benefits them] and this is 'drowning' them with plays and amusements. Whereas, its principal aim should be instead preparing one's physical condition for Jihaad [fighting in the cause of Allaah] and supporting the truth.   

Allaah Knows best.