Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey has announced his conversion to Islam, joining a long list of popular sports personalities who recently embraced Islam.
The news about the decision of the Gunners star was posted on Facebook, featuring him in a photo with a Muslim scholar smiling while holding a copy of the Qur’an.
Also a post on his Instagram page confirms the player’s conversion, and his photo holding the Qur’an has gone viral on social media.
“Thomas Partey has converted to Islam today. Barakallah brother,” the page wrote.
Others also shared the news about the player’s decision.
Thomas Partey has converted to Islam.
Congratulations, @Thomaspartey22! ❤️ pic.twitter.com/m3M4x2jbTK
— Connor Humm (@TikiTakaConnor) March 18, 2022
Partey is a Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Premier League club Arsenal and his country’s national team.
Partey began his professional career at Spanish club Atlético Madrid in 2013, going on loan to Mallorca and Almería, and returned to Atlético in 2015, with whom he won the UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup in 2018.
In 2020, he joined Arsenal in a transfer worth £45 million (€50 million), becoming the most expensive Ghanaian player of all time.
A Ghanaian international, Partey represented his nation at three Africa Cup of Nations (2017, 2019, and 2021). He was named into the CAF Team of the Year in 2018, and won Ghana Player of the Year in 2018 and 2019.
Islam is the fastest-growing religion in the world, with the number of Muslims set to grow at more than twice the rate of the overall world population between 2015 and 2060 according to research by the Pew Research Center.
Earlier this month, Dutch football star Clarence Seedorf embraced Islam, announcing the decision on Instagram.