Manchester United and the rest of the English Premier League are massively popular in Muslim-majority Malaysia and the rest of the Asian region, but conservative religious scholars said the jersey is un-Islamic.
Also off limits are the shirts of teams including Brazil, Portugal, Barcelona, Serbia and Norway, all of which carry images of the cross on their team emblems.
'This is very dangerous. As a Muslim, we should not worship the symbols of other religions or the devils,' Nooh Gadot, a top Islamic cleric from the southern Johor state, told AFP.
'It will erode our belief in Islam. There is no reason why we as Muslims should wear such jerseys, either for sports or fashion reasons,' said Mr Nooh, an advisor to the Johor religious council. 'Even if it (the jersey) is a gift, we should decline it. It is even more sinful when people realise this is wrong and still buy these jerseys to wear,' he added.
Mr Nooh said there was no 'fatwa', or religious edict, against the shirts but that one was not needed when it was clearly wrong for Muslims to don such a garment. 'These Muslims should repent, repent immediately,' he said. -- AFP
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