Anthony Fauci, the United States’ top infectious disease specialist, said he has been mistakenly painted as an obstacle to the NFL’s upcoming season and only gave its officials advice after they requested it.
The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases said he was consulted by the NFL as the nation’s most popular professional sport searches for a way to preserve the safety of players and the public during the pandemic.
“I haven’t set any strict conditions or other directions for the football league,” Fauci said in an interview. “They have come to me and asked me from a medical standpoint a bunch of questions about risks.