The Players’ Association President Damiano Tommasi has written to the Government and FIGC about the Coronavirus outbreak. “Stopping football is the most useful action for the country at this moment.”
There are growing calls for the Serie A, B and C seasons to be suspended entirely, just as they were about to get going again with games played behind closed doors.
The Players’ Association President Damiano Tommasi has written to the Government and FIGC about the Coronavirus outbreak. “Stopping football is the most useful action for the country at this moment.”
There are growing calls for the Serie A, B and C seasons to be suspended entirely, just as they were about to get going again with games played behind closed doors.
The spread of the epidemic is not slowing down at all, prompting more extreme lockdown measures that effectively isolate all of Lombardy and 11 other provinces.
“This morning I wrote to Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, Minister for Sport Vincenzo Spadafora, CONI President Giovanni Malagò, FIGC President Gabriele Gravina, Lega Serie A President Paolo Dal Pino, Lega Serie B President Mauro Balata and Lega Pro President Francesco Ghirelli,” confirmed Tommasi on Twitter.
“Stopping football is the most useful action for the country at this moment. The teams we should be cheering on are playing in our hospitals and emergency centres.”
The lockdown would not affect professional football players, as there are permits for travel if for “unavoidable work commitments.”
Players are increasing their pressure to stop the campaign, including Brescia striker Mario Balotelli, fearing the current situation won’t stop the spread of the Coronavirus.
The issue is not so much players getting the illness, but the possibility of passing it on to family or friends who have underlying health issues, are elderly or children, who would be far more at risk of death.
There have been over 5,000 positive cases of Coronavirus in Italy, with 233 deaths and over 500 in intensive care.
That number is expected to rise again in today’s bulletin from the Government.