Leeds condemned fans’ “unexpected and disappointing” booing during last weekend’s game against Manchester City during the players’ scheduled break to break their Ramadan fast, but gave their defense a number of “mitigating circumstances”.
During the game against Manchester City, loud boos were heard during the 78-second delay, despite a message on the Elland Road big screen showing the game confirming that the game had been paused to break the players’ rapid pace.
Another break is set to take place in Sunday’s FA Cup tie with Norwich, with Leeds’ Joel Pirro expected to take part.
The club attempted to prevent a repeat by asking fans to ‘respect’ players who broke their fast, but in a lengthy statement that did not include an explicit apology, it listed four ‘mitigating circumstances’ surrounding the original incident.
The four mitigation methods mentioned are:
- In a statement, Liz wrote: “This is the first time a match at Elland Road has been paused to allow players observing Ramadan to break their fast. In hindsight, we should have communicated more proactively ahead of the Manchester City game to explain to supporters that this would happen, but there was a clear lack of awareness among some in attendance.”
- Secondly, Leeds said: “We displayed a message on the large screens at Elland Road to explain why the match was paused, but this message was not visible in approximately 25% of the stadium, including the South Stand.”
- Thirdly, the club explained: “In their previous match against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in November 2025, the game was controversial due to a ‘tactical time-out’ during the injury break in the second half. And it may have been thought that this was happening again as the squad gathered on the touchline supporters (a similar incident led to boos against Sunderland AFC last Tuesday).”
- Lastly, Leeds said: “Due to the intensity at the start of the stoppage, many players were confused as to why the match was paused, which can be clearly seen in the broadcast footage and may have also caused confusion for supporters.”
Liz concluded her statement by saying: “Football still has a long way to go to eradicate the taints of the game – racism, homophobia, tragic chants and Jimmy Saville’s ridicule of Jimmy Saville – we are bombarded by opposing fans at every game. As a club we will continue to work to ensure that, in time, these problems no longer exist.”
As part of the Ramadan fast, observers must avoid all food and drink (including water) from dawn to sunset.
