LONDON (AP) — Premier League players will undergo daily coronavirus tests as part of emergency measures approved by clubs on Tuesday to deal with the worsening pandemic in England.
Two Premier League matches have been called off in the last three days due to outbreaks at clubs. The league reported on Monday that COVID-19 cases rose by 350% to a record 42 infections in a week across the 20 clubs from 3,805 tests on players and staff.
Britain is braced for a worsening health emergency caused by the new omicron variant, with health authorities saying it is responsible for about 200,000 new cases a day with the number of infections doubling every two to three days.
Premier League players will have to wait in their cars for the outcome of daily rapid antigen test results at their clubs, which will also conduct PCR tests twice a week on them. All players and coaches will have to resume wearing masks around clubs.
Outbreaks within squads led to the postponements of Brighton-Tottenham on Sunday and Brentford-Manchester United on Tuesday.
The Premier League has avoided a complete shutdown since the 100-day pause in the season from the start of the pandemic in March 2020.
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