Zurich, Feb 15 (BNA): The World Cup qualifying match between Brazil and Argentina in September, which was suspended just minutes after kick-off when health officials ran on to the pitch, must be restarted, the International Football Association (FIFA) said.
The match at the NeoQuimica Arena in Sao Paulo was comically halted five minutes later when Brazilian health officials invaded the field to prevent Argentina players based in England, who have been accused of breaching the country’s quarantine rules due to COVID-19, from playing, Reuters reports. .
Officials alleged that the Argentines violated Brazilian rules which state that travelers who have been in the UK, South Africa or India in the past two weeks are barred from entering the country unless they are Brazilian citizens or have permanent residence.
Officials alleged that the players misled border officials by declaring that they had not been in the Red List country in the 14 days leading up to the match.
Argentine officials have said they believe the same protocols used at the Copa America in Brazil in June were in place for World Cup qualifiers to allow teams to travel across the continent. CONMEBOL confirmed this interpretation.
“After a thorough investigation of various factual elements and in light of the applicable regulations, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee decided to replay the match at a date and place determined by FIFA,” it said in a statement.
In addition, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee concluded that the abandonment of the match stemmed from several shortcomings of the parties involved.
The four England-based players, Emiliano Buendia, Emiliano Martinez, Giovanni Lo Celso and Christian Romero, have all been banned for two international matches by FIFA’s disciplinary committee for failing to comply with FIFA’s COVID-19 protocols.
FIFA also imposed fines of 500,000 Swiss francs ($540,000) and 200,000 Swiss francs on the Brazilian and Argentine soccer federations for failing to ensure “order and security.”
The Argentine Football Association said it would appeal the decision.
The FA said “the decision does not correspond to the facts” and asked FIFA to provide the legal basis for the decision so that it could prepare an appeal.
Both teams have already qualified unbeaten for Qatar, with Brazil leading the South American qualifying group, four points behind Argentina. Both teams have three matches to play.
The final scheduled round of qualifiers will take place in late March.