Buenos Aires (AFP)
The President of the Republic of Argentina Alberto Fernandez questioned Thursday about the relevance of the participation of Argentine clubs in the Copa Libertadores, which is due to resume on September 15, while the pandemic is raging in South America, and in particular in Neighboring Brazil.
"We have to understand that we are in a pandemic. You cross the border, enter Brazil and the number of sources of infection that exist in Brazil ... look at the numbers. I don't want to say more because I don't want to disturb nobody, "Alberto Fernandez worried about Radio Con Vos.
Brazil is the second most affected country in the world by Covid-19, with 90,134 dead and 2,552,265 people infected, according to the latest official figures.
Argentina, on Thursday, had identified 3,311 deaths from the coronavirus and 178,996 people infected.
The South American Football Confederation (Conmebol) announced on July 11 that the Copa Libertadores, the South American equivalent of the European Champions League, would resume on September 15 after being suspended in March due to the coronavirus epidemic.
Boca Juniors, River Plate, Defensa y Justicia and Tigre are the four Argentinian clubs involved in this competition. River Plate, the first to enter the track, will face Brazilian club Sao Paolo on September 17.
"I do not question the clubs, which surely have their interests, football being an industry which generates money, I understand all that", affirmed the head of state.
"But let's put ourselves in the place of the players, of the fear that they have of transmitting the virus, if they contract it, to their relatives, more particularly to their parents," he added.
"Should we demand a boy who feels this way to go and play a football game in the epicenter of the pandemic? Because right now the epicenter is South America!" is questioned Alberto Fernandez.
The Copa Libertadores is supposed to pick up where it left off, at the group stage. The round of 16 will be played on November 25 and December 2, the quarterfinals on December 9 and 16 and the semi-finals on January 6 and 13, 2021.
© 2020 AFP