FIFA PRESIDENT Gianni Infantino was spotted at the Copa America final between Argentina and Brazil – less than 24 hours before the culmination of Euro 2020.
Infantino was in attendance at the Maracana for the final of the oldest international football tournament just hours before he was due to jet off to London for England’s clash with Italy at Wembley.
A flight from Rio de Janeiro to London takes around 12 hours, meaning he’ll reach the home of football with just hours to spare.
But the 51-year-old will be EXEMPT from hotel quarantine – despite touching down in the UK from a red list country.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has waived quarantine rules for VIPs attending the tournament.
They do, however, have to leave the country within 24 hours of their arrival.
Footy fans were fuming at Infantino’s freedom to enter the UK without quarantine and took to Twitter to express their frustration.
One said: “Gianni Infantino the President of @FIFAcom is at the Maracana for the #CopaAmericaFINAL where #COVID19 cases are sky high and will be at Wembley later for the #euro2020final.
“It clearly isn’t what you know but who you know!”
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Another said: “Why does #Infantino get to travel from #Brazil to #London, and go to the #EURO2020 Final ON THE SAME DAY, without isolating, #FIFA #UEFA, #BorisJohnson, #SajidJavid?”
And another said: “Infantino at the Copa America final. No doubt he’ll fly to London and beat isolating to be at the euro 2020 final afterwards.”
One remarked: “Gianni Infantino in Rio for the Copa América final and then flying to London for the Euro 2020 final later today.
“I’d be giving this potential cocktail of variants a wide berth over the next couple of weeks.”
Another remarked: “Not Infantino travelling from brazil to London tonight. Chile…covid is nothing for the rich.”
England booked their place in their first major final in 55 years with a 2-1 victory over Denmark on Thursday.
Gareth Southgate’s will face the Azzurri in front of 60,000 fans at Wembley.
And the Three Lions chief has urged his troops not to let the size of the occasion overwhelm them.
He said: “I didn’t say very much at all before the semi-final because I felt the team were totally prepared.
“I normally assess where they are during the day. We usually have a meeting about the set plays in the morning, and then I’ll speak to them before we leave the hotel.
“You’re two hours before the game at that point. You want the message to resonate but it’s about how you make the players feel as much as anything. We don’t need to be getting them overhyped.
“There will be enough energy and excitement around the stadium due to the occasion itself.
“We need to keep that calmness that we have had for the whole month. We’ve dealt with it really well.
” The game against Scotland, we were disappointed with how it went, but it was a big occasion for us.
“Germany was another one and then the quarter- and the semi-final. The players have coped remarkably well and I’m certain they will do so again.”
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
