As the start of the MLS is Back Tournament looms July 8, FC Dallas currently is preparing without 10 team members — nine players and one coach — who tested positive for coronavirus since their arrival in Orlando.
On Wednesday afternoon, FC Dallas and MLS released statements about six players testing positive. Later in the day, multiple reports came out that an additional three players and a coach also tested positive.
According to The Athletic, the latter four results must still be confirmed by follow-up tests.
All league players who have arrived to date have been tested immediately and sequestered until the results were available. Two of the FCD players tested positive on their first day, June 27, and were placed in the “isolation area” of the team hotel. The other four players tested positive within the past two days and also are in that portion of the hotel. The rest of the team and its staff are quarantining in their hotel rooms while they await more test results.
Major League Soccer says that during the isolation period, the players are routinely communicating with a “healthcare provider” to address their needs and assess any symptoms.
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The FC Dallas contingent has not, according to MLS, interacted with members of any other club. There have been 392 individuals tested for COVID-19 as part of the MLS is Back protocols, and these are the only positive results.
In a statement released by the club, FC Dallas said that every team member had a negative test prior to departing for Orlando on Saturday.
FC Dallas is scheduled for a friendly match against NYCFC on July 4; it is not known if that will go forward. FCD is scheduled to open the tournament July 9 at 10:30 p.m. ET against the Vancouver Whitecaps.
