Due to massive flooding in the south, the Brazilian government wants to stop all local football

PORTO ALEGRE, Brazil (AP) — The Brazilian government asked the country’s soccer officials to suspend all tournaments Friday because of massive flooding in the south.

Further heavy rain is expected in the state of Rio Grande do Sul through the weekend, which could worsen the situation for millions of people and further delay the cleaning of the flooded stadiums of top clubs Gremio, Internacional and Juventude.

According to authorities, at least 107 people have died from the floods and another 134 are missing. More than 230,000 people are displaced and know they may not be able to return home for two weeks.

The Brazilian Football Federation has not yet responded to Sports Minister André Fufuca’s call to stop all nationwide tournaments for men, women and under-20s. This week the CBF agreed to suspend all football activity in the southern state, which borders Uruguay and Argentina, for 20 days. The situation will be reassessed on May 27th. The South American football association CONMEBOL has also suspended two club games in the region.

“It is a desolate situation for the players and their family members that cannot be measured physically or psychologically,” said Fufuca. “The entire nation is also committed to supporting the players and families as well as the entire population of the region.”

The Beira-Rio and Arena do Gremio stadiums in the state capital Porto Alegre have been surrounded by floods since last weekend. Their playing fields and parts of the stands are under water. Since last week, only jet skis have entered the two venues.

Juventude’s Alfredo Jaconi Stadium, on the outskirts of Caxias do Sul, was less affected but still inaccessible by land.

The airports in Porto Alegre and Caxias do Sul are closed, limiting transportation options in the state, water supplies are still scarce and hotels are full.

This week the CBF agreed to postpone ten games of the three top clubs affected in the national league and national cup.

Local media reports that Gremio is considering moving to another state to further prepare for competitions. The next game is scheduled for May 29 in a Copa Libertadores group stage game against Bolivia’s The Strongest.

Internacional and Juventude have not yet announced their plans.

All three clubs’ games in the fifth round of the Brazilian league were suspended last weekend. Internacional is in ninth place, Gremio in 11th and Juventude in 15th.

___

AP Soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Mauricio Savarese, The Associated Press