Governing Bodies
SPANISH LA LIGA TO TEST ALL PLAYERS FOR CORONAVIRUS
The president of the Spanish football federation (RFEF), Luis Rubiales, has attacked the league’s plan to carry out coronavirus tests at every first and second division club as “irresponsible” when there are others who need to be tested more urgently amid a health crisis.
He has also insisted that the Spanish domestic season must be completed, even if it means going beyond the proposed final date of June 30, and that playing games behind closed doors is a “last resort”.
There have been 11,178 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Spain and as of Tuesday, 491 people were known to have died of the disease.
Various teams have tested players for the virus, including Valencia, who said on Monday (March 16) that 35 per cent of their first-team squad and staff have tested positive for the coronavirus but were asymptomatic.
They include defenders Ezequiel Garay, José Luis Gayà and Eliaquim Mangala.
Espanyol have said six of their players have tested positive. “We had confirmation this afternoon that six members of the first team and the technical staff of RCD Espanyol de Barcelona have returned positive results for Covid-19 tests carried out during the last hours,” the club said in a statement on Tuesday.
“All of them are suffering from mild symptoms and they are complying with the medical recommendations.”
Every club is currently on lockdown with training suspended and players sent home.
Elche forward Jonathas is the one confirmed case among the second division clubs so far.
Some clubs have already carried out tests and La Liga had planned to extend that facility to every club in the top two tiers – 42 in total.
The league is keen to monitor the situation with the hope of restarting the competition by the first weekend of May, if not before. Officially, La Liga has postponed two weekends of games, starting last Friday.
“I think it is irresponsible when there are patients with much more at stake than a competition, with life itself (at stake),” Rubiales said. “It is not appropriate to be using tests (at clubs) when there are people who need tests. It fails to see reality.
“We are all confined to home; it doesn’t make any difference if you have been infected or not. It’s the same outcome (isolation). And if someone does have severe symptoms, that’s the person who needs the test. Not a footballer. He is going to be isolated (anyway).
“The authorities have said this – if anyone has a test, masks, gloves, hand them over. Hospitals are running out.
“There’s someone sending tests to (clubs) – that’s a lack of solidarity, it could even be illegal. He should be ashamed. We don’t want that, and it’s anti-patriotic.
“When all this is over, when fewer people need it, then maybe we will consider (testing) players at our clubs (from Segunda B level down) but for now, tests have to be for those that need it. We all have to lend a hand.”
Rubiales also said that he had put the federation’s facilities, including the residency at its Las Rozas HQ, at the disposal of the government. He rather pointedly called upon the league to do the same, saying that clubs have facilities and resources that could be useful.
He also criticised the league’s president Javier Tebas, with whom he is engaged in a bitter and ongoing battle, for claiming that the failure to finish the league season could cost €678 million (£1.06 billion).
Rubiales suggested it was negligent for La Liga not to be insured against such losses, and promised the country’s smaller clubs that depend on RFEF subsidies that they would receive every cent.
He also noted that the league was pushing to complete the season by June 30, come what may. “Some put money before health,” he said.
By contrast, the RFEF president said completing the season by that date was the aim, but that it was not “an insurmountable wall”.
“There is no date,” he said, describing the plan as one of “extending the season as long as is necessary”, and ruled out just deciding a title winner without the games being played.
Barcelona, the current league leaders, will not be handed the title, and nor should European positions be decided off the pitch.
“It would a tremendous injustice not to finish the season. We are not going to declare it void, we want to finish it,” he said.
Asked what Spain would do if Uefa demanded that there was a cut-off to determine next year’s European positions before the league had been completed, Rubiales said he would ask Uefa what criteria to apply.
He added that the Copa del Rey final between Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad would be played, but he did not know when.
“We don’t even know when competition will restart,” Rubiales said. “We are in the hands of what the health authorities say. We can’t guess the future.”
–Guardian (UK), Reuters
Governing Bodies
FIFA opens disciplinary proceedings against Congo officials over financial misconduct
FIFA’s ethics committee launched disciplinary proceedings against three senior Congolese Football Federation (FECOFOOT) officials on Wednesday, including president Jean-Guy Mayolas, over allegations of financial misconduct.
Mayolas, his wife and his son were sentenced to life in prison earlier this month after a criminal court in the Congolese capital, Brazzaville, convicted them of embezzling $1.1 million in FIFA funds. Media reports said their whereabouts were not known , and they were tried in absentia.
FECOFOOT general secretary Wantete Badji and treasurer Raoul Kanda are also subject to the disciplinary proceedings, FIFA said. Badji and Kanda were sentenced to five years each in prison by the court in Brazzaville for related charges.
“These proceedings follow the receipt of information and documents during an audit,” FIFA said in a statement.
-Reuters
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The World Anti-Doping Agency is considering rewriting its rules to try barring President Donald Trump and all U.S. government officials from attending the LA Olympics in 2028, in a move that could also have implications for the World Cup being hosted by the U.S. this summer.
The proposal, on the agenda for next Tuesday’s meeting of the global drug-fighting watchdog’s executive committee, is the latest manoeuvre to come out of a yearslong refusal of the U.S. government to pay its annual dues to WADA.
The refusal is part of the American government’s unanimous, bipartisan protest of the agency’s handling of a case involving Chinese swimmers and other issues.
The Associated Press learned of the agenda item through correspondence it obtained between WADA and European officials involved in the agency’s decision-making. Two others with knowledge of the agenda confirmed the existence of the rules proposal to AP; they were not authorised to speak publicly about the agenda, which has not been released publicly.
The proposal was, in fact, first brought up in 2024, when U.S. authorities successfully lobbied for its rejection. The U.S. has since lost its seat on the executive committee.
“In spite of WADA’s increasing threats, we continue to stand firm in our demand for accountability and transparency from WADA to ensure fair competition in sport,” said Sara Carter, the director of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP).
The rule, if passed, would figure to be mostly symbolic, given the limits an international sports federation could have on the president of a country attending an event inside his own borders.
“I have never heard of a $50-million-budget Swiss foundation being able to enforce a rule to, for example, prevent the United States president from going anywhere,” said Carter’s predecessor at ONDCP, Rahul Gupta, who was on the WADA executive committee two years ago and led the movement to reject the proposal. “And the next question you have to ask is: How are you going to enforce it? Are they going to post a red notice from Interpol? It’s ludicrous. It’s clear they have not thought this through.”
In a news release after this story published, WADA said the AP story was “entirely misleading,” focusing on Fitzgerald’s statement to the AP that if proposals being discussed were “introduced, given that the rules would not apply retroactively, the FIFA World Cup, LA and Salt Lake City Games (in 2034) would not be covered.”
Fitzgerald’s only answer to three emails from AP seeking clarification on his initial response — specifically about how a rule that had not yet been adopted could or couldn’t be applied retroactively on events that are scheduled for the future — was: “I’m trying to say that it would not apply retroactively so those events would not be covered. Given that and the next meeting of the Board being scheduled for November, I don’t see how it could come into play for this year’s World Cup.”
-AP
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The Confederation of African Football has dismissed Yasin Osman Robleh, the Djiboutian official who headed its judicial bodies for the past six years, in a move aimed at restoring confidence in the organisation’s disciplinary processes.
According to reports from convergence sources, the decision was confirmed on Saturday by CAF Secretary General Veron Mosengo-Omba, bringing an abrupt end to Robleh’s tenure overseeing the confederation’s disciplinary and investigative committees since 2019.
Robleh’s position reportedly came under increasing pressure following the controversy surrounding sanctions imposed after the Africa Cup of Nations Final between Morocco and Senegal. The disciplinary decisions that followed the match sparked criticism from several quarters and placed CAF’s legal framework under intense scrutiny.
In response to the situation, CAF’s Executive Committee has appointed Togolese lawyer Cedric Egai, currently the confederation’s Director of Legal Affairs, as interim head of the judicial bodies.
Egai is expected to stabilise the organisation’s legal arm while CAF works toward appointing a permanent successor to Robleh.
Disciplinary Decisions Delayed
The leadership change has already affected ongoing disciplinary processes within the confederation. CAF’s disciplinary committee reportedly held hearings last Thursday on several cases, including the high-profile encounter involving Egypt’s Al Ahly and Morocco’s AS FAR.
However, decisions on those matters have been temporarily put on hold pending the confirmation of new leadership within the judicial structure.
Sources indicate that once a permanent successor is appointed, CAF will move swiftly to conclude outstanding disciplinary rulings affecting both clubs and national teams.
Restoring Confidence
The move is widely seen as part of CAF’s effort to restore confidence in its judicial system following weeks of controversy surrounding disciplinary decisions at major competitions.
Robleh’s departure closes a significant chapter in CAF’s legal administration, while Egai’s interim appointment signals a potential shift in leadership and governance at a critical time for African football.
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