England star Jude Bellingham urges fellow players to get vaccinated as the Borussia Dortmund star reveals he had both of his Covid-19 vaccinations as well as his booster jab
- Jude Bellingham says he would advise fellow players to get vaccinated
- Very few players have spoken out in public about the Covid-19 vaccinations
- The Borussia Dortmund midfielder has had both jabs as well as the booster
- England boss Gareth Southgate has also advised players to be jabbed
Jude Bellingham has urged his fellow footballers to get vaccinated – with England boss Gareth Southgate also reiterating his advice for players to be jabbed.
Borussia Dortmund and Three Lions midfielder Bellingham, 18, revealed he has had both of his Covid-19 vaccinations, as well as a booster.
The uptake in the Bundesliga is far higher than the Premier League. In October, Germany’s top flight announced 94 per cent of players and coaches were fully vaccinated. In the same month, the Premier League revealed only 68 per cent of players had been double jabbed.
Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham has advised fellow players to get the jab
Bellingham has returned to England for Christmas with the Bundesliga now on a winter break.
‘Footballers have a platform in society,’ said Bellingham, who attended BBC Sports Personality of the Year in Salford on Sunday after being nominated for Young Sports Personality of the Year, which was won by skateboarder Sky Brown.
‘It is a personal choice for me. I have had both the jabs and a booster, just to be safe. I don’t want to be passing anything to my family or be missing games myself.
Bellingham attended the BBC Sports Personality of the Year show in Salford on Sunday
‘If people choose to get it, then they should get it. If they don’t, they should have a look at reasons why. It is not for me to sit here and say everyone has to get vaccinated but I want everyone to be safe so I would probably advise them to get it.
‘I am out in Germany and it is going quite well. We have fans starting to come back into stadiums a bit slower than England but vaccine rates for players are a lot higher.
‘That may be one thing they need to look at and also the fans, making sure they can go to the games safely is the most important thing.’
England manager Gareth Southgate has also stated his belief that players should get jabbed
Gareth Southgate was alongside his England player Bellingham at SPOTY, where he won Coach of the Year.
‘We all have that responsibility to think of other people as well as ourselves at times like this,’ he told BBC Breakfast.
‘I don’t see another way out of the situation we’re in (other than being vaccinated). We won’t get clear unless the numbers are high.
‘I think we’ve got huge medical experience and if you’re listening to the right experts, that should give people comfort in that situation.’