Infantino warns against restarting football too soon

FIFA president Gianni Infantino has warned against restarting football competitions in Europe too early.

The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic has seen well over ninety percent of European football leagues suspended.

Speculations are ride Bundesliga could resume in May with some European leagues starting to plan and prepare for resumptions.

FIFA chief, Infantino has however cautioned against the dangers of such a move.

“As our main priority, our principles, the ones we employ in our competitions and also we invite to everyone to follow, is health comes first,” Infantino told the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).

“As much as I emphasise it, it is not enough. It’s not worth to put at risk any human life for any game, any competition, nor any league. Everyone should have this clear in their minds.

“It would be more than irresponsible to restart the competitions if the situation is not safe 100 per cent. If you must wait a bit more time, we must do it. It is better to wait a bit more than taking risks,” he said.

Many bodies and leagues around the world are set to face financial difficulties in the wake of COVID-19, particularly if games are cancelled or played behind closed doors.

FIFA is said to have a $2.7 billion cash reserve it is set to use to create an emergency fund and Infantino said the governing body was planning to help.

“Thanks to the work we have been doing together in FIFA during the last four years, we find ourselves in a very solid financial situation. FIFA have a good reputation in the financial markets,” he said.

“It helps us to consolidate a solid base of important reserves, but our reserves are not FIFA’s money, it is the money of football. So, when football is in need, we have to think about a solution to help. It is our responsibility. This is how I see it as president of FIFA.

“As football has stopped in the whole world, we are all facing economic issues in different levels, from the base to professional football. Given this, we are already collaborating with you to asses the financial impact to prepare the right answer,” Infantino concluded.