KEIR RADNEDGE REPORTS: Brazil’s Supreme Court will rule on Thursday on whether the country should stage the imminent Copa America.

Court president Luiz Fux yesterday accepted a request from Minister Carmen LĂșcia to order an extraordinary session to rule on appeals against the staging from the Workers’ Party (PT) and the Brazilian Socialist Party (PSB).

South American confederation CONMEBOL accepted an offer from the Brazilian government and football federation (CBF) after original cohosts Colombia and Argentina withdrew because of domestic security and health concerns.

However Brazil is one of the most badly-battered nations in the world by the Covid-19 pandemic and its hosting prospects have beebn criticised heavily by health experts both at home and abroad.

Brazil has recorded 463,000 deaths from Covid, in addition to 16.5m confirmed cases of the disease.

National team players have backed off from a threatened boycott.

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