Blackburn Rovers have been commended for their work in helping to make the club more inclusive to the Muslim community.

The club won the Ihsan Award for Excellence in Diversity and Inclusion at the Islam Channel Business Awards this week.

The awards ceremony, held at the Hilton London Metropole, celebrated the entrepreneurial talents and outstanding successes of Muslims in business.

Rovers CEO Steve Waggott said: “It was a huge privilege for us to be the only football club nominated in this category, amongst four of the biggest accounting/law firms in the world, and so to go on and win it is an amazing achievement.

“It’s testament to our ethos as a football club and the work we’ve done to ensure our Muslim community, and Muslim football fans across the country, know they can enjoy the game they love, as well as fulfilling their religious requirements at Blackburn Rovers.

"We will carry on making sure every football fan and staff member feels welcome working for and supporting Blackburn Rovers.”

The club has introduced a number of new initiatives at Ewood Park in recent years, including the Ewood Express, the Next Generation Stand, the multi-faith room, halal food and alcohol-free bars, as well as Eid prayers on the pitch.

Yasir Sufi, Rovers' Integration and Development Manager, was presented the award.

He said: “Because of the work Blackburn Rovers has done over the past 18 months, not only our local Muslim community, but also the Muslim community around the world, knows that every football club should be open for them, should be welcoming to them and should make the provisions where Muslims can observe their prayers, have access to halal food and have access to facilities that are inclusive.

“I can’t thank enough all of the team at Blackburn Rovers, from our senior management all the way down to every member of staff, who prioritises this every day in what they do.”