Colombian professional football team Águilas Doradas fielded only seven players on Sunday for a regular match in the country’s División Mayor top league due to a Covid-19 outbreak in the squad.
According to a statement published on Águilas Doradas’ official Twitter account, the club had only seven players available after 16 players returned positive Covid-19 tests this past week and seven more were injured.
The club had asked for the match – set to be played in Rionegro, Colombia, against Chico Boyacá FC – to be postponed due to the Covid-19 outbreak, but the División Mayor rejected the request.
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“We want to inform the public that Talento Dorado SA tried everything so that the 18th match taking place today [Sunday] in Rionegro (Águilas Doradas vs Chico Boyacá) would be postponed with the firm conviction of protecting sporting integrity; still, every argument put forward was denied,” said the statement.
“Águilas Doradas sees itself forced to play the match with only seven players to avoid severe sanctions.”
According to international FIFA regulations and División Mayor’s own rules, a match can go ahead as long as each team can field at least seven players.
Águilas Doradas entered the stadium holding two signs reading “Fair Play” and “First of All, Life” before playing the match, which resulted in a 3-0 victory for Chico Boyacá.
CNN’s Patrick Sung contributed to reporting
