Observe the Sabbath day to sanctify it

I began reading an article in the New York Times about London's Jewish soccer team when I was struck by the words, "about 90 minutes before kickoff on a recent Saturday" and wondered how Jewish is a team that disregards the Jewish Sabbath.

...There are about 285,000 Jews in England, according to the 2011 census, and roughly two-thirds of them are said to live in or around London. The Lions were initially known as Maccabi Association London — and played in a Sunday league with other Jewish teams — but changed their name before the 2000 season when the club decided to enter into England’s more formal soccer structure.

 

At that time, there was some resistance from leaders of Britain’s Maccabi Union, who said it was not appropriate for the team to continue using the Maccabi name if it was going to play on Saturdays (the Jewish Sabbath), as is customary for most leagues in England. Club management considered several alternatives, and ultimately settled on Lions as a tribute to the lion of Judah, which is a symbol of one of the biblical tribes of Israel.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/28/sports/soccer/lions-of-judah-and-of-london-a-jewish-soccer-team-plays-when-saturday-comes.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

Rabbi Wallerstein's words posted on Torah Anytime in a shiur titled The Correct Definition of Olam Habah particularly resonated with me. Click here to listen.