Maldives to Halt Sports During Prayer Times and Build Prayer Facilities at All State Venues

MALE’ — The government will require all sports activities across the Maldives to pause during prayer times, President Dr Mohamed Muizzu announced today, alongside a plan to build dedicated prayer and ablution facilities at all state-managed sports venues.

President Muizzu said the policy reflects the country’s identity as a fully Islamic nation and that daily life, including recreational activity, should genuinely reflect that. He noted that young Maldivians have developed a habit of continuing sports well past prayer times and said that needs to change.

The infrastructure component is already moving. The Ministry of Sports has signed agreements with contractors to include prayer rooms and ablution facilities in upcoming developments. All future state-funded sports complexes and indoor arenas will be required to include these facilities by default. The President pointed specifically to the Ekuveni complex and Maafannu Stadium as venues where the changes will be applied.

“Right now, even at the Ekuveni sports complex, which is used heavily by the public, there are no proper arrangements to perform wudhu or pray,” President Muizzu said. “We are changing that.”

The operational side of the policy, requiring venues to halt games and practices following the Adhan for long enough to allow prayer, applies to all sports venues across the country. No enforcement mechanism was detailed at today’s press conference.

The announcement sits within a broader pattern of religious policy initiatives under President Muizzu, which has included a generational tobacco ban, restrictions on content deemed contrary to Islamic values and the social media age restriction announced earlier the same day. The government has consistently framed these measures as obligations of an Islamic state’s identity rather than restrictions on individual freedom.