Friday, July 9th, 2021
“No evidence” of EM infection
UEFA rejects all guilt
Rising numbers of corona infections in participating countries? That has nothing to do with football, says Aleksander Ceferin. In an interview, the UEFA boss also describes the rainbow ban as “no alternative” – and explains why the EM was “not fair”.
UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin has denied a connection between the admission of spectators to the European Football Championship and the increasing number of corona infections in several participating countries. “I haven’t seen any evidence yet that there is a connection,” said the head of the European Football Union (UEFA) on the BBC podcast “The Sports Desk”.
Referring specifically to the preliminary round match between England and Scotland, he said that “20,000 Scottish fans came to London without a ticket. And you don’t get tested if you go to a pub or anywhere else. To blame football is from my point of view irresponsible.” According to scientific surveys, around 2000 new infections in Scotland can be traced back to the “Battle of Britain”.
Overall, Ceferin was “extremely relieved” that the tournament, which ended on Sunday with the England-Italy final, went off without any significant corona incidents among the teams. The 53-year-old Slovene said that he was “tested 76 times”. All teams “acted very professionally” and respected the bubble system.
Pan-European EM not again
With regard to the rainbow controversy surrounding the preliminary round match between the German national team and Hungary on June 23rd in Munich, the UEFA boss defended the much-criticized action of his association as having no alternative: “The problem in the specific situation was that we received a request, which was about a protest against a government in Europe. UEFA’s statute is not allowed to protest against a government. We won’t let ourselves be drawn into a political struggle. But our position on diversity is clear. “
UEFA had rejected the Munich City Council’s motion to light up the stadium in rainbow colors in protest against the anti-homosexual policies of Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The continental association was “due to its statutes a politically and religiously neutral” organization, according to the UEFA side.
Ceferin ruled out a new pan-European EM under his leadership. “It’s not correct that some teams had to travel over 10,000 kilometers and others only 1,000. It wasn’t fair to the fans either,” he said. “It’s an interesting idea, but difficult to implement. I don’t think we can do again.” Ceferin’s predecessor Michel Platini launched the format in 2012. The EM 2024 takes place entirely in Germany.
.