HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC – Bermuda’s World Cup qualifying match against Aruba on March 30 has been changed to the IMG Academy Complex in Bradenton, Florida, after reports surfaced here that at least one Bermudian player failed a COVID-19 test.
The Bermuda Football Association (BFA) said moving from the Bermuda National Stadium would “reduce travel fatigue and possible exposure to the virus”.
The Aruba game comes five days after Bermuda challenged Canada in Orlando in another qualifying match, which was supposed to be held in Canada but moved because of coronavirus restrictions.
Neither the BFA nor national coach Kyle Lightbourne would be distracted by Friday’s media reports of COVID-19 at the camp after the squad flew home from Miami a week ago following a seven-day training session in Bradenton, where they also played the Bahamas twice, won the first 3-0 friendly and drew the second 0-0.
The BFA simply stated that the 28-member travel party “currently adheres to the established public health quarantine guidelines”.
“The recent senior men’s national team training camp in Bradenton, Florida, provided a great opportunity for training and valuable game minutes for all players and coaching staff,” said a BFA statement.
“It gave the coaching staff the opportunity to get a look at new and fringe players. The training center at IMG Academy was a great platform for youngsters Remy Coddington and Enrique Russell to score their first goals at the senior international level.
“The camp was also an opportunity to test conditions in Florida and fully practice the improved travel protocols. The lessons learned in all aspects were invaluable.
“The BFA is aware of the speculation over the status of the national team since their return to the Island.
“We accept a policy that there would be no comment of any kind on individual health circumstances or the provision of any information that could lead to the disclosure of personal information.
“We can confirm that the team delegation is currently adhering to the established public health quarantine guidelines.”
Referring to the Aruba game, the BFA said: “This switch at the location will reduce travel fatigue, possible exposure to the virus, and any health restrictions that could be imposed should the team travel back to Bermuda in followed the match against Canada’s national team on March 25 in Orlando, Florida. ”
Bermuda is expected to take on Suriname and the Cayman Islands in June in other qualifiers for Qatar 2022.