AFP, Sao Paulo
Brazil confirmed Tuesday it has agreed to stand in as emergency host for the troubled Copa America, though the threats of a Covid-19 surge, political divisions and a court battle still loom over the tournament.
Organizers raised eyebrows Monday when they named Brazil as replacement hosts for Argentina because of a Covid-19 surge in the latter -- apparently overlooking the fact that Brazil has the second-highest death toll in the pandemic.
Further doubts about the fate of the 2021 edition of the world's oldest running international football tournament emerged when Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro's chief of staff, Luiz Eduardo Ramos, said the decision was not yet final.
However, both Bolsonaro and Ramos said Tuesday the tournament was a go.
"Brazil will host the Copa America," the far-right president said, saying the governors of Rio de Janeiro, Mato Grosso do Sul and Goias had agreed for their states to play hosts, plus the capital, Brasilia, and a fifth yet to be named. Ramos tweeted: "Confirmed: the Copa America will be held in Brazil." Bolsonaro said matches would be held without fans.
Media reports had indicated the South American football confederation, CONMEBOL, was pushing to allow some fans, at least for the final.
There are still plenty of potential pitfalls ahead as organizers race to pull together the June 13-July 10 championships.
At least six of Brazil's 27 states have said they will not host matches because of the pandemic.
Opposition politicians meanwhile petitioned the Supreme Court to block the tournament, saying it would not be safe.
They included the Workers' Party (PT) of leftist ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who currently leads Bolsonaro in the polls for Brazil's October 2022 presidential elections.
