Paris (AFP)
The Fifa Council Bureau decided on Monday to relax the rules for making international players available for the September gatherings, disrupted by the many travel restrictions due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
Clubs are usually obliged to let their players join their squads during international periods governed by Fifa. However, in September they will have some flexibility in the event that quarantine measures or travel restrictions are put in place in countries where players will be required to travel.
Thus, the clubs will no longer be forced to release their players if "a quarantine of at least five days is compulsory from the arrival" on the place "where the player's national team match is supposed to be played. or at the location of the latter's club on his return, according to the world football body in a press release.
The provision will not be obligatory either if "there is a restriction on travel to or from one of the aforementioned places".
FIFA specifies, however, that this will only apply in the event that an exemption from these health measures has not been granted for the national teams by the local authorities.
UEFA, the European football confederation, the only confederation whose matches were maintained in September, had in fact urged the national federations last week to approach their respective authorities in this regard. It was to ask for the establishment of "corridors" for international selections, so that they are exempt from health measures (quarantines, etc ...) on the grounds that international players would be regularly tested for Covid- 19 by a strict protocol and thus presented "no risk to society".
© 2020 AFP