Football authorities told to ban players who break coronavirus rules

[ASFN Admin]

English football’s governing bodies have been told to start banning players for flouting coronavirus rules. After seven Premier League stars were caught staging illicit Christmas gatherings, the game’s authorities have come under pressure to launch a crackdown on such breaches as the country’s – and football’s – Covid-19 crisis deepens. The Football Association, Premier League and English Football League have no specific regulations in place under which players can be punished for flouting coronavirus rules, unlike for gambling or racism offences. The FA rules do cover conduct deemed to be “improper” or that “brings the game into disrepute” but, so far, clubs have been left to sanction their own players – in many cases privately – when it comes to Covid-related transgressions. Professor John Ashton, the former director of public health for the North West, said football’s authorities needed to show that breaches of coronavirus rules were “a disgrace”. “It’s time for them to grow some gonads,” he told Telegraph Sport. “Football has such responsibility to show leadership and to set an example that it’s a disgrace. These people are not leaders that are running the national game. They’re cowards, actually, and they’re more interested in the money than anything else.” Former FA chairman David Bernstein also called for the suspension of players who flout coronavirus rules, saying the conduct of those who did so had reinforced his view that the season should be halted. “I love as much as anybody sitting down and watching football on television – it’s great – but when you watch it, there’s a sense of normality, in spite of the missing crowds, about it,” he said. “Players are cuddling and hugging and doing all the things that we shouldn’t be doing and I think that’s sending out a really confusing message to the public, which is much more important in a way than whether the detailed protocols in football are working or not. “And then, when you see the headline in your newspaper this morning about players misbehaving and going out and partying and so on, it’s doubly sending out the wrong message. “If I was the Prime Minister, I would have Marcus Rashford or some of the more responsible and respected players in the game coming alongside me and pleading with the public, and particularly young people, to take this absolutely seriously – because it’s deadly.” He added: “There’s honestly more important things than whether Liverpool get three points or Man City drop a player or something. These are life-and-death issues. There are 500 to 1,000 people dying a day.”

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