The Premier League is concerned about vaccination coverage among players in the competition. The organization behind England’s top division sent a letter to all clubs last week, talking about a ‘reward’ for the clubs with a high percentage of vaccinated players. At the moment, at only seven of the twenty clubs, more than half of the player group has been fully vaccinated against the corona virus, the Premier League writes in the letter.
The way in which clubs can be rewarded is not yet known. “We are considering whether, and in what way, we can ‘reward’ teams/players who have been vaccinated,” UK media quoted from the letter, the contents of which became known on Wednesday. “It is becoming increasingly clear that the government and health authorities are using full vaccination as a criterion for traveling or attending large-scale events.”
Sky Sports reported last week that a majority of Premier League players have received at least one shot, but that the turnout for the second shot has been disappointing. Moreover, there are big differences between clubs. Wolverhampton Wanderers has indicated that the entire selection has been vaccinated. At Brentford and Leeds United it is more than ninety percent. Many other clubs have indicated that they are urging their players to be vaccinated, but cannot impose any coercion.
On Tuesday, N’Golo Kanté tested positive, which means that the Chelsea midfielder is missing from the Champions League game against Juventus on Wednesday evening. Trainer Thomas Tuchel said in a response that players are ‘adult people’ and can choose whether they are vaccinated. As a football coach, he does not consider himself the right person to intervene in the discussion and wants to accept the choices of players. “That’s pretty much all I can say about it. I made the choice for myself. Vaccination seems to offer good protection. I have been vaccinated.”
However, social media is making fun of the announcement of a ‘reward’ for clubs with a high vaccination coverage. Because the reward is not yet known, social media users fill it in themselves. “The reward is that Mike Dean won’t whistle your matches for a year,” it sounds on reddit. “Tottenham Hotspur is now vaccinating like crazy, because Daniel Levy wants to win this prize at all costs.” A Tottenham supporter: “Is the prize a midfield? I would like a midfield.” Another: “The price is that your players drastically reduce the chance of contracting a virus that affects the entire planet.”
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