Key result
Brazilian football return-to-play protocols linked to ~300 COVID-19 cases, underscoring the need for refinement.
Why the study?
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted elite sports globally, requiring safe return protocols to prevent viral transmission during competition.
Observational
Yes
The return to play during rising COVID-19 case numbers and decentralized match cities in the 2020 Brazilian Championship was associated with 302 positive cases across 14 outbreaks, highlighting the need for refined safety protocols.
Return-to-play amid rising cases was associated with outbreaks in elite soccer; leaves open optimal mitigation strategies for future pandemics.
The COVID-19 pandemic directly reached and impacted upon elite sports and caused the postponement of sporting events globally. In order to enable the return of activities, protocols were created with recommendations to prevent the transmission of COVID-19. The objective of this work is to analyze and compare the safe return protocols of major football leagues and associations to those of the Brazilian Championship, as well as to survey the numbers of COVID-19 outbreaks in clubs that competed in the 2020 Brazilian Championship Series A. The documentary research was carried out through the analysis of articles published on open-source football league and federation websites. National and international return protocols were verified, as well as the documenting of isolated cases and outbreaks of COVID-19 in the Brazilian Championship. In the Brazilian Championship, the return to play occurred at a time when COVID-19 case numbers were rising, a fact that, together with the decentralization of the match cities, was likely linked to the number of positive cases. A total of 302 positive cases of COVID-19 were identified in 14 outbreaks during the competition. Therefore, this work identifies good practice and underscores the need to reassess and refine the protocols to minimize the impacts of COVID-19 going forward.
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Mataruna-Dos-Santos et al. (2021) conducted an observational in COVID-19. Return-to-play protocols during the COVID-19 pandemic was evaluated on COVID-19 positive cases and outbreaks. During the 2020 Brazilian Championship Series A, 302 positive cases of COVID-19 were identified across 14 outbreaks, underscoring the need to refine return-to-play protocols.
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