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Copa América moves from Argentina to Brazil two weeks before start of tournament

CONMEBOL, the South American soccer body, will move a tournament from one coronavirus hot spot to another with its decision Monday to relocate Copa América from Argentina to Brazil two weeks before the start of the event. Its original co-hosts, Colombia and Argentina, were ruled out in the last two weeks after domestic political protests and an increase in coronavirus cases in the those countries.

“The Brazilian government demonstrated agility and decision-making capacity at a fundamental moment for South American football,” CONMEBOL President Alejandro Domínguez said in a statement. “Brazil is experiencing a moment of stability, it has proven infrastructure and accumulated experience and to organize a competition of this magnitude ”

Argentina is experiencing one of the world’s worst coronavirus outbreaks.