Two requests in Brazil to prevent the establishment of "Copa America" .. and the Supreme Court decides the case
The Brazilian Supreme Court announced yesterday that it will hold hearings on two requests submitted to it in order to prevent the holding of the Copa America in the country, which casts more doubt about the continental event five days before its start.
Chief Justice Louise Fox said that due to the "exceptional nature of the case" the decision was made that the 11-member court will hear the case in an extraordinary virtual session tomorrow.
The Confederation of African Football, "Conmebol", is struggling to hold the continental championship, which was originally postponed from last summer due to the repercussions of the Corona virus.
The tournament, which includes 10 teams, is scheduled to start on Sunday and continue until July 10, and was originally scheduled in Colombia and Argentina, but the first was excluded due to violent anti-government protests, and the second due to the outbreak of the Corona virus.
With the opening match looming, Brazil stepped in last week to rescue the tournament after CONMEBOL knocked Argentina out of the hospitality accounts.
But Brazil is also suffering from "Covid-19", and experts warn that it is facing a new boom that a major international sports tournament may exacerbate.
The epidemic has so far claimed the lives of nearly 475,000 people in Brazil, which ranks second in terms of the number of deaths behind the United States.
Hosting the tournament has become a contentious and political issue in the country, especially after right-wing President Jair Bolsonaro, who regularly defied the advice of experts on containing the epidemic, gave his blessing to host it, ignoring the advice of epidemiologists who expressed their concerns, like some coaches and players of the ten participating countries. The Supreme Court agreed to consider two calls submitted by the National Metalworkers Union and opposition parliamentarian Julio Delgado and his Brazilian Socialist Party.
The National Metalworkers' Union believes that hosting the tournament "risks causing an increase in injuries and deaths from Covid-19," the court said in a statement agreeing to hear the case.
As for Delgado and the Brazilian Socialist Party, they consider that hosting "violates the basic rights to life and health."
Several other requests have also been made to prevent the tournament from taking place in different courts, including another to the Supreme Court by the leftist Workers' Party of former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, a potential opponent of Bolsonaro in next year's presidential election.
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