British government won't change policy to allow footballers to travel for World Cup qualifying

The Premier League declared Tuesday that its teams will not release players for September World Cup qualifiers held in countries on England's "red list" because footballers would miss multiple club contests due to COVID-19 quarantine restrictions upon their returns to England. 

According to Sky Sports, the British government currently has "no plans" to change its policies even after FIFA president Gianni Infantino requested exemptions for players in a message written to United Kingdom Prime Minister Boris Johnson. 

Since Tuesday's news, the English Football League and Spain's La Liga have both backed the Premier League's stance. 

"Many of the best players in the world compete in leagues in England and Spain and we believe these countries also share the responsibility to preserve and protect the sporting integrity of competitions around the world," Infantino explained in a released statement. "On the issue of quarantine restrictions in England, for players returning from red-list countries, I have written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson and appealed for the necessary support, in particular, so players are not deprived of the opportunity of representing their countries in qualifying matches for the FIFA World Cup, which is one of the ultimate honours for a professional footballer.

"I have suggested that an approach similar to that adopted by the UK government for the final stages of the Euro 2020 be implemented for the upcoming international matches."

The British government says this situation is different because there was less travel involved during the summer's UEFA European Championship that was held after European domestic seasons had finished.  

Roughly 60 Premier League players, including Liverpool and Egypt star forward Mohamed Salah, will not be released next week for the international fixtures. 

The 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar is scheduled to begin in November of that year.