#WorldCup: It may be all over… but we won’t know, as England play Sweden on Shabbat!
search

The latest Jewish News

Read this week’s digital edition

Click Here

#WorldCup: It may be all over… but we won’t know, as England play Sweden on Shabbat!

With the Three Lions playing their crunch quarter-final match on Saturday afternoon, some observant Jews are going to extreme lengths to avoid finding out the score

England's Kieran Trippier (left) and England's Harry Kane celebrate their side winning the penalty shoot out during the FIFA World Cup 2018, round of 16 match at the Spartak Stadium, Moscow. 


Photo credit: Adam Davy/PA Wire.
England's Kieran Trippier (left) and England's Harry Kane celebrate their side winning the penalty shoot out during the FIFA World Cup 2018, round of 16 match at the Spartak Stadium, Moscow. Photo credit: Adam Davy/PA Wire.

From an extended Shabbat schluff to staging a shul lock-in – or simply running away to a remote island – more observant fans might have to go to extremes to avoid finding out the England v Sweden quarter-final score, when the two teams meet on Saturday.

The Three Lions’ biggest game in two decades kicks off at 3pm, so the Shomer Shabbat will have to wait nearly six hours to find out if Gareth Southgate’s side has gone through to the semi-finals, a feat not achieved in 18 years.

Richard Verber, communications director of United Synagogue (US), said: “Being in the ‘easy’ side of the World Cup draw may help the England football team, but it’s proving a challenge for Jewish fans with the quarter-final falling on Shabbat.

“I know of US members coming up with all sorts of elaborate ways to avoid finding out the score until after Shabbat, including an extended Shabbat schluff, having seudah shelishit in the park and staging a lock-in at shul. I hope their efforts will contribute to a place in the semi-final!”

The mid-afternoon start, however, means shulgoers can say an extra prayer, just hours before kick-off, and Rabbi Michael Laitner, senior rabbi of United Synagogue Jewish Living and assistant rabbi of Finchley Synagogue, believes that will be the case.

He said: “I know I’ll be praying extra hard every morning, especially on Shabbat, and am sure this will be replicated across all our US shuls. Come on England!”

Synagogues have already got into the World Cup spirit, with England’s dramatic last-16 penalty shoot-out win against Colombia on Tuesday evening screened at three US – Highgate, Mill Hill and Finchley, while Belmont hosted a ladies-only supper quiz, as the men watched the match.

Earlier in the day, Jewish Care hosted a special 1966 day at Michael Sobell Jewish Community Centre. Run in partnership with Maccabi GB, Sporting Memories Foundation and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, pupils from Independent Jewish Day School shared World Cup trivia and sporting memories with members.

Support your Jewish community. Support your Jewish News

Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.

For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.

Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.

You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.

100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...

Engaging

Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.

Celebrating

There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.

Pioneering

In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.

Campaigning

Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.

Easy access

In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.

Voice of our community to wider society

The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.

We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.

read more: