Brazil v Venezuela: COVID chaos as La Vinotinto face up to tall task
The tournament has been moved from Colombia and Argentina to Brazil amid political unrest in the former nation and a spike in COVID-19 cases and deaths in the latter.
Brazil has also suffered horribly during the pandemic, although calls to postpone the tournament have been resisted despite some players from the host nation voicing their opposition.
Now Venezuela’s attempts to snap a run of eight winless Copa America encounters with the Selecao – who have won six in that streak – look set to be compromised after news that 12 of their travelling party have tested positive for coronavirus.
“The health department was notified by CONMEBOL that 12 members of the Venezuelan national team’s delegation, including players and coaching staff, tested positive for COVID-19,” the secretary of state for Brasilia said in a statement, with the match set to take place at Estadio Nacional in the Brazilian capital.
“They are all asymptomatic, isolated in single rooms and are being monitored.”
The lack of any public statement on the matter from either CONMEBOL or the Venezuelan Football Federation (FVF), means it is unclear how many of the 12 are players.
