BarcelonaThe decision of world number 1 tennis player Serak Novak Djokovic not to be vaccinated against covid-19 has ended up setting the political agenda for many states. Defended by the government of the populist Aleksandar Vucic at home in Serbia, Djokovic has seen more and more countries close their doors to him if he wants to continue competing without being vaccinated. The last, Spain. Thus, the spokeswoman for the Spanish government, Isabel Rodríguez, has asked the Serbian tennis player to be vaccinated to set an example. “It simply came to our notice then. Not only is it good to be good on the track, but you also have to be good in life. ”
Spanish law, however, allows entry into its territory without being vaccinated if a negative PCR test performed in the previous days is presented, which is why Djokovic could compete in Spain in the coming months. The mayor of Madrid, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, of the Popular Party, defined the attitude of the Serb in Australia as “deplorable” just 24 hours after saying that he would welcome him to the city to play the Mutua Open of Madrid in April, as “it remains the world number 1 and a great attraction.” Martínez-Almeida wanted to clarify the statements by adding: “Any top tennis player would be welcome, but I did not like Djokovic’s attitude in Australia.” His party colleague and president of the Community of Madrid, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, also criticized the Serb, saying that he should be vaccinated: “I do not share his vision on this issue.” Only Vox, in statements by his spokesman Iván Espinosa de los Monteros, made it clear that they welcome the Serb to compete in Spain, provided that he complies with the regulations, but recalled: “We would encourage Rafa Nadal, because we want him to win a Spanish ”.
The 34-year-old’s serial, then, is not over. If throughout 2021 he did not want to explain if he was vaccinated, in a season in which he could compete, as the major tournaments allowed players to enter without knowing if they were vaccinated, doing daily tests in a bubble system, This season, 2022, the Serb admitted that he is not vaccinated when he applied for an entry visa to Australia – where the first Grand Slam of the season is being played these days – according to a rule that allows him to enter the country without the vaccine if you just passed the disease. A mistake in the visa application process – it did not include the fact that in the previous 15 days he had passed through a third country, Spain – and the suspicions that he had held public events in Belgrade despite being positive ended up leading the Australian government to deport -lo. In recent hours, the French government has changed its law and obliges all athletes who want to compete in their country to be vaccinated.
The sponsors, angry
Djokovic, therefore, could lose the world number one if he cannot compete in many tournaments. The Serb’s entourage is still unaware of whether he will be vaccinated, while the player’s first sponsors are considering breaking his contract with him because he has a bad image. French brand Lacoste has admitted that they want to talk to the tennis player to rethink the relationship, born in 2017. The French brand is worried about the bad image given by a player who, if not vaccinated, could not play in June in Roland Garros, the most important event of the year for a brand closely linked to tennis, as it was founded by Henri Lacoste, winner of 7 Grand Slams in the 20s. Djokovic earns about 26 million euros each season thanks to contracts of advertising with brands such as Asics or the French Peugeot, which are still pending the case, as the player could be left without playing some of the most important tournaments of the season if not vaccinated. Right now he could only enter the UK, if the law doesn’t change, to play Wimbledon. And without playing them, he would stop being number 1. But he would also stop making money, as last season he won 9 million euros in prizes in the tournaments he won.
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