Empty seats at screening events, as the match timings clashed with fasting hours

As football fans from all over the world flocked to Russia to witness the biggest event in sports, Bahrain failed to witness that frenzy here yesterday.

Feeling the pinch most were coffee shops in the Kingdom that made elaborate arrangements to welcome fans with mega screening events.

Initial reports indicate that only a few turned up at the coffee shops for the curtain raiser match between Saudi Arabia and Russia.

The deal breaker, according to viewers, here was the timing of the match even though the opening match gained massive local interest for the participation of the neighbouring country.

The game kicked off at 6:00 pm while people were still fasting and only half an hour before Maghrib Azan- the time at which Muslims break their fast.

Majority of the first half of the game was before breaking the fast, which means no visitors for coffee shops. People started to come in for the second half of the match, but attendance was still underwhelming.

Much less than for the usual weekend football matches. A popular, traditional, coffee shop in Muharraq, which usually remains packed during the weekend club football matches, was almost empty this time, with fans failing to show up even for the second half of the match.