England team hotel has food seized and fined over lack of condoms

The Football Association insists it is not worried by confirmation that out-of-date food was seized from England's World Cup hotel in Rio de Janeiro.

Butter, salmon and Parma ham was recently taken by health inspectors Procon from the Royal Tulip hotel in the Sao Conrado district of the city.

Consumer protection authority Procon stated on its website: “In Sao Conrado, at the Hotel Royal Tulip, where the England team will be based, 2.362kg of unusable butter, Parma ham and salmon was seized. The hotel was also fined for not providing condoms to guests.”

Responding to concerns about the standard of food that England’s players will consume, the FA offered an assurance their meals will be prepared by a chef travelling in the World Cup party.

An FA spokesman said: “The England chef has visited the Royal Tulip hotel several times and is happy with the cleanliness of the facilities. He will also closely supervise all the players’ food intake.”

Procon found 25kg of pasta, shrimp, salmon and butter was unfit for consumption at Italy’s World Cup base, the Hotel Portobello, along with 24kg of food that did not specify an expiry date.

The hotel was also warned for not providing condoms to guests, as is required under Brazilian law.

As part of a wider campaign by the ‘State Secretariat for the Defense and Protection of Consumers’, officials visited 13 restaurants, supermarkets, bakeries, shops and hotels, and notified eight of them for irregularities.

“In total, 218kg of food unfit for consumption was discarded,” the Secretariat said in a statement.

Agents also visited the Hotel Caesar Park where the Netherlands squad will be based but found no irregularities there.