Cruzeiro told to compete in Argentina
Reuters - Tuesday 07 July 2009, 16:04
RIO DE JANEIRO - Cruzeiro have been told
they must play the first leg of the Libertadores Cup final
against Estudiantes in La Plata despite the
H1N1 flu outbreak in Argentina that has claimed at least 60
lives.
"The health authorities in the Argentine Republic have not
prohibited any sporting activity, specifically football," the
South American Football Confederation (CSF) said in a statement
sent to the Brazilian football body CBF.
Cruzeiro, who postponed their trip to Buenos Aires until
Tuesday, had sought a new CSF decision as the death toll in
Argentina rose ahead of Wednesday night's match and several
provinces declared a state of emergency.
The Brazilian club will convert a whole floor of their hotel
in Buenos Aires into a bunker until they have to travel to La
Plata by bus for the match with players prohibited from leaving
in their free time, Argentine media reported.
The CSF, which had first confirmed the match on Friday,
pointed out that the Argentine league championship decider went
ahead in Buenos Aires on Sunday with a crowd of 50,000 at Velez
Sarsfield, who beat Huracan 1-0 to win the Clausura title.
However, other sports bodies have suspended all activity,
including the Buenos Aires Top 14 rugby championship which had
been scheduled to start last Saturday and other team sports.
The CSF did not suspend Libertadores Cup matches due to be
played in Mexico when the flu strain broke out there earlier
this year but gave South American teams the choice as to whether
they should travel there. Uruguayan and Brazilian players
refused to go and the Mexican clubs withdrew from the
competition.