Football Fans
Coronavirus: England to lift mask, distancing rules July 19
Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday revealed plans to lift most of England’s legal coronavirus restrictions, including face masks and social distancing from July 19, urging personal responsibility rather than government edict. Johnson had initially aimed for a full reopening on June 21, but was forced to push back the date because of a surge in the highly contagious Delta variant. That variant now accounts for nearly all new Covid-19 cases in Britain, and infection rates have soared, sparking concern. But mass vaccinations have stopped a resultant surge in hospital admissions or deaths. “This pandemic is far from over, it certainly won’t be over by the 19th,” warned Johnson. “We must reconcile ourselves, sadly, to more deaths from Covid. “There’s only one reason why we can contemplate g...
European Super League shelved as more clubs withdraw
The European Super League collapsed on Wednesday as eight of the 12 founding members from England, Italy and Spain abandoned the breakaway project. The project collapsed after it came under massive pressure from fans, politicians, football officials and even the British royals. Founder and Juventus chairman Andrea Agnelli told Reuters he was reluctantly calling time on the new league. This was after six English clubs withdrew on Tuesday, with Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid following suit and AC Milan indicating they would too. “The voices and the concerns of fans around the world have clearly been expressed about the Super League, and AC Milan must be sensitive to the voice of those who love this wonderful sport,” the Italian club said in a statement. Agnelli said he still believed in the...
British premier condemns European Super League plans
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has taken to Twitter to condemn plans for the Premier League Big Six to be part of the formation of a European super league. In Sunday’s big story, as Sky Sports report, all of the traditional Big Six in England have signed up to the idea of playing in the proposed European super league. The competition would see many of Europe’s elite compete with each other, without the prospect of relegation, year after year, season after season, until football dies a death. There’s been quite the uproar over it, and understandably so. Football fans do not want to sit around and watch the sport they love be destroyed before their eyes. Neither, apparently, does Boris Johnson, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, who has taken to Twitter to post a two-tweet response to t...
Myanmar police fire rubber bullets, wounding three, as hundreds of thousands protest
Supporters of ousted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi clashed with police on Friday as hundreds of thousands joined nationwide pro-democracy demonstrations in defiance of the military junta’s call to halt mass gatherings. The United Nations human rights office said more than 350 people, including officials, activists and monks, have been arrested in Myanmar since the Feb. 1 coup, including some who face criminal charges on “dubious grounds”. The U.N. rights investigator for Myanmar told a special session of the Human Rights Council in Geneva that there were “growing reports, photographic evidence” that security forces have used live ammunition against protesters, in violation of international law. Special Rapporteur Thomas Andrews urged the U.N. Security Council to consider imposing sanctio...
Casemiro: Football can prove a return to normal is possible
Real Madrid midfielder Casemiro says it is “important” that football can return in Spain and that if it does, it will demonstrate that society can eventually return to normal after the coronavirus pandemic. Football fans had their first top-level live games to watch on Saturday with the return of the Bundesliga and, while the situation around the game was far from normal, the games were a source of entertainment and comfort to plenty. Spanish football is hoping to get the green light to resume as well, with La Liga chief Javier Tebas currently aiming for June 12 as the date when games can go on. “It’s a really significant step, not just for football but for society too, to show people that it is possible,” Casemiro told Real Madrid TV. “It’s not just about playing football, it’s about peop...
