Ruling on the Ramadan soccer league
Question

                What is the ruling on the Ramadan soccer league which has become popular among the people in Ramadaan?.
Praise be to Allah.
    What the believer should do is to make the most of special 
    occasions and worship his Lord a great deal at those times. One of the 
    greatest of these occasions is the month of Ramadaan. 

    How great are the acts of worship that a Muslim does in 
    Ramadaan, which bring a great reward. 

    Ramadaan is the month of fasting, praying at night, reading 
    Qur’aan, remembering Allaah (dhikr), making du’a’, doing ‘umrah, giving 
    iftar to those who are fasting, giving charity, and being kind and generous 
    to the needy. It is the month of i’tikaaf and turning away from this world 
    and turning to Allaah, and striving in worship. 

    The virtues of Ramadaan are too many to name, and too 
    well-known to need to be mentioned here. 

    Every night in Ramadaan Allaah has those whom He ransoms from 
    the Fire. In it the gates of Paradise are opened and the gates of Hell are 
    shut, and the devils are chained up.  There are many means of forgiveness in 
    this month, such as fasting, qiyaam al-layl and spending the night of Laylat 
    al-Qadr in prayer. The one who is truly deprived is the one who is deprived 
    of the goodness of this month, and the one who is truly a loser is the one 
    who has not been forgiven by the end of this month.  

    If a person is not forgiven in Ramadaan, when will he be 
    forgiven?! 

    If he does not turn to Allaah in Ramadaan, when will he turn 
    to Him?! 

    Hence the Prophet  (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon 
    him) said: “May his nose be rubbed in the dust, a man for whom Ramadaan 
    comes and then goes before he is forgiven.” Narrated by al-Tirmidhi, 3545; 
    classed as saheeh by al-Albaani in Saheeh al-Tirmidhi. 
If he does not make the 
    most of his time and fill it with worship of Allaah in this month, when will 
    he do that?! 

    In Ramadaan the Muslim moves from one act of worship to 
    another, from prayer to reading Qur’aan to reciting tasbeeh and tahleel, 
    from offering iftar to those who are fasting to praying qiyaam al-layl and 
    tahajjud to repentance  and praying for forgiveness in the moments before 
    dawn… etc. 

    In question 26869 we have presented a suggested schedule for 
    the Muslim in Ramadaan. 

    When can a believer find time to waste in this blessed month? 
    By Allaah, if time could be bought the wise man would spend all he has to 
    buy it. Time is a person’s life and will certainly come to an end. Some 
    people spend their lives obeying Allaah and some spend their lives obeying 
    the Shaytaan and their own whims and desires. The Prophet  (peace and 
    blessings of Allaah be upon him) indeed spoke the truth when he said: “Every 
    person is striving for himself and selling his soul, so he will ransom 
    himself or doom himself.” Narrated by Muslim, 223. 

    What this means is that every person is striving; some of 
    them strive for the sake of Allaah by worshipping and obeying Him, so they 
    save themselves from punishment, and some strive for the Shaytaan by 
    following their own whims and desires, so they are doomed. This was the view 
    of al-Nawawi. 

    The least that can be said concerning these games with regard 
    to this month is that they are a waste of time. There is nothing more 
    precious to a person than his time for it is his life. 

    Moreover, why should Ramadaan be singled out for these games? 
    Why not do them in Sha’baan or Rajab or Shawwaal? 

    Why is Ramadaan singled out for soap operas and other 
    programming offered by TV channels, so that for many people Ramadaan has 
    become a month of soccer, TV shows and staying up late etc? 

    These people are negligent of the reason why Allaah enjoined 
    fasting in the month of Ramadaan, which is so that people may attain taqwa 
    (piety) as He says (interpretation of the meaning): 

    “O you who believe! Observing As-Sawm (the fasting) is 
    prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may 
    become Al-Muttaqoon (the pious)”

    [al-Baqarah 2:183]
What do they know about 
    taqwa, which means obeying Allaah and refraining from that which Allaah has 
    forbidden? 

    The believer should be wise and firm with himself, he should 
    not follow his whims and desires lest he regret it at the time when regret 
    will be to no avail. 

    May his nose be rubbed in the dust, the man who wastes his 
    time in Ramadaan with idle leisure and nights spent doing things other than 
    worshipping Allaah, until Ramadaan ends and he has only increased in sin and 
    being far away from Allaah. 

    We ask Allaah to set the affairs of the Muslims straight and 
    to bring them back to their religion.  May He cause us to live until 
    Ramadaan comes and help us to obey Him and worship Him properly, and accept 
    our worship from us, for He is Ever Near and Ever Responsive.