Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Mexico have agreed to waive their right to trigger a five-day ban on players who were prevented from traveling to World Cup qualifiers by their clubs. Had the FIFA regulation been enforced, the players from these respective nations who were held back by their clubs would have missed their upcoming games in the Premier League this weekend.
The players who were unable to represent their nations were held back by their clubs due to health concerns, as several of the South American nations concerned have been red-listed by the UK government with visitors requiring a 10-day quarantine upon their return.
The Premier League stood by the clubs that decided to prevent their players from traveling, explaining that had the players participated in World Cup Qualifiers, they would have been subjected to 10 days in hotel quarantine, meaning that they would have missed several training sessions and potentially further matches.
With the British government still enforcing stringent travel restrictions, FIFA is hoping that such regulations will be eased in time for the next set of World Cup qualifiers that are set to take place in October.
