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Karl-Heinz Rummenigge can imagine soccer players as vaccination models
Photo:
Arne Dedert / dpa
Football professionals could be role models when it comes to vaccinating against the corona virus - at least if Karl-Heinz Rummenigge has his way.
"For example, if a FC Bayern player has himself vaccinated, trust in the population grows," said the chairman of the board of the German record champions Bayern Munich to the broadcaster Sport1.
"We don't want to push our way at all, but footballers could make a contribution to society as role models."
Two things would stand out in the vaccination debate.
"Apparently we still have too little vaccine at the moment, and part of the population is still critical of vaccination out of fear of possible side effects," said Rummenigge.
"But here football can do something very important and set a good example."
Top athletes are not prioritized in the current vaccination ordinance with division into different groups.
Priority will initially be given to residents and employees of care facilities, as well as all people over 80. Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) announced several times that she would make an offer to all adults in Germany who want a vaccination by September 21.
Discussions about vaccination benefits for top athletes
Recently there had been increasing discussions about vaccination benefits for top athletes.
DOSB President Alfons Hörmann spoke out in favor of potential Olympic participants "having their turn in the second quarter as soon as possible - not in the sense of preferential treatment, but when there is enough vaccine."
Hörmann expects "a completely different scenario" for the spring and the weeks before the summer games in Tokyo than at the time of the shortage of the corona vaccine, as Hörmann told ARD.
Javelin throwing national coach Boris Obergföll demanded that the German Olympic delegation be vaccinated before the Games, which started on July 23, if enough vaccine doses were available.
"If possible, in June and not two weeks before the games."
The chairman of the Bundestag sports committee, Dagmar Freitag (SPD), thinks this hope is unrealistic.
"Here a perfectly understandable wish meets reality," she told ARD.
"We see every day how difficult it is to get a functioning vaccination infrastructure going."
Rummenigge is hoping that the corona vaccination will provide decisive advantages for Bundesliga football.
“The more people vaccinated, the more spectators might one day return to the stadium without any fear,” he said.
“We at FC Bayern are interested in bringing the atmosphere and emotions back to the stadiums, not just for financial reasons, but also for reasons of football culture.” He believes “that there will be a realistic chance of playing with spectators again by the middle of the year at the latest «.
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