Your Email:

Your Name:

To:

Subject:

Message:
The 2010 FIFA World Cup is now underway, and while there are a number of majority-Muslim countries in this year’s tournament, many of the best Muslim players don’t in fact play for these countries. Here’s a break down of some key players who are openly Muslim: Nicolas Anelka: One player is Nicolas Anelka, a starter for the French national team.  Anelka, who plays for one of the top British teams in Club play, Chelsea, would be considered by some as the top Muslim player in the world. He converted in 2004, while he was playing for one of Britain’s other top Club teams, Manchester. Anelka told The Independent: “My religion offers stability and keeps my feet on the ground. It helps me to know who and where I am.” Franck Ribery: Anelka’s teammate on the French national team, Franck Ribery, would be Anelka’s chief competition for the title of top Muslim player in the world. Ribery, who was a two-time winner of the French Player of the Year award, also converted to Islam. Since his conversion, Ribery has adopted the name Bilal Yusuf Mohammed. Unfortunately, Ribery’s solid soccer record is shadowed with controversy - he is currently being investigated for his involvement as a client in a prostitution ring. Kolo Toure: Kolo Toure, who currently plays for the aforementioned Chelsea, is another Muslim player who is looking to have a significant impact at this year’s World Cup. Toure who is from the Ivory Coast was born Muslim, is also the older brother of two other high profile soccer players, Yaya and Ibrahim Toure. Sulley Muntari: Sulley Muntari is part of the Ghana national team, a team which had what many consider to be a minor upset with their open game win over Serbia. Muntari’s Muslim beliefs garnered in August 2009, during Ramadan, when his Club manager, Jose Mourinho, pulled him from a game and said his rationale for doing so was because he lacked energy. Mourinho speculated the reason for his lack of energy was him fasting and that players shouldn’t fast if they intend on playing. Khalid Boulahrouz: Khalid Boulahrouz who has what has to be considered one of the best nicknames in the sports world, “Khalid the Cannibal,” is a member of the Netherlands national team. While Boulharouz wouldn’t be considered the best player on this list, his bandwagon may be the best one to jump on. His Netherlands team, while they don’t get the attention of Brazil or Argentina, has emerged as a pretty popular sleeper pick to win the 2010 World Cup. Zinedine Zidane: Although he is not a participant in this year’s World Cup and retired years ago, no list of Muslim players could be done without Zinedine Zidane. Zidane is known, by many, primarily for head butting Italian Marco Materazzi in the finals of the 2006 World Cup which many believed cost France the 2006 World Cup. But regardless of that incident, Zidane is undoubtedly one of the greatest soccer players in history as evidenced by him being one of only two players to be a three-time FIFA Player of the Year. Those are some of the Muslims who look to have a major impact in this year’s tournament. We at elan will continue to monitor these players and their teams throughout this year’s World Cup. http://www.elanthemag.com/index.php/site/featured_articles_detail/faces_to_watch_muslim_stars_of_the_world_cup-nid374162904/