Joe Nicholson/USA TODAY Sports via Reuters
Eric Reid, Colin Kaepernick and Eli Herold (from left to right) kneel down to protest against police violence in the USA before the game during the national anthem (Seattle, September 25, 2016)
The most profitable league in the world is starting the new season with a corona set of rules that look original in places. For example, after wrestling and tugging at each other for 60 minutes, the players in the NFL American Football League have to keep a distance of six feet immediately after the final whistle, i.e. a good six feet. And swapping shirts after the game is also prohibited. “That’s damn stupid,” says not only quarterback Deshaun Watson of the Houston Texans.
In 26 of the 32 stadiums, all of which are huge bowls, the grandstands will be deserted for the time being. Only a limited number of spectators are allowed in the remaining six, including the opening game between Super Bowl Champion Kansas City Chiefs and the Texans (Friday, 2:20 am CEST).
Surely the football professionals will demonstrate against racist police violence, as basketball, baseball and soccer players have done before. The kneeling during the anthem, long frowned upon by league boss Roger Goodell, should become the standard. “We used to not listen to the players and now encourage them to spread their messages and protest peacefully,” said the Goodell at last, and added: “Black lives matter.”
The cultural change could well have gone hand in hand with the return of the quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who initiated the “Take a Knee” protests four years ago and was immediately dismissed from the San Francisco 49ers. But no team wanted to sign him. After all, he will return to the field in the video game “Madden 21”. “Colin Kaepernick is one of the best free agents in football and has regular potential in the quarterback position,” said the Canadian manufacturer EA on Tuesday (local time). “Millions of Madden NFL fans” wanted him back in the game.
The players should be tested for Corona every 24 hours. So far, only eight of 44,510 samples have been positive. However, the teams will only be traveling this week. Some players took the “opt-out” option and took a break. NFL champion Laurent Duvernay-Tardif, for example, prefers to continue his “part-time job” as a doctor. (sid / jW)
