For the second consecutive year, the CONCACAF Nations League final between the United States and Mexico was suspended late in the match due to Mexican fans chanting homophobic slurs towards the U.S. Men’s National Team (USMNT).
Drew Fischer, a referee from Canada, halted Sunday night’s game in the 88th minute. The Americans walked away with the 2-0 win at AT&T Stadium in front of a crowd of 59,471. (RELATED: Yikes! Muay Thai Fighter Plays Outright Mr. Potato Head With Opponent’s Face)
After waiting around for 4 1/2 minutes, the game was resumed. However, the match ended up being suspended in stoppage time, six minutes in. This delay was shorter, with play resuming just 90 seconds later. From there, the match was able to finish, with nine minutes total being added onto the end of the game in stoppage time.
“CONCACAF condemns the discriminatory chanting,” said the regional governing body of North America, Central America and the Caribbean in an official statement. “Security staff in the stadium identified and ejected a significant number of fans, and the referee and match officials activated the FIFA protocol. … It is extremely disappointing that this matter continues to be an issue at some matches.”
The match has been stopped due to discriminatory chanting.
— U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) March 25, 2024
Play has been stopped once again due to discriminatory chants.
— U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) March 25, 2024
Gregg Berhalter, the head coach of USMNT, as well as some of his players also had debris thrown at them after midfielder Gio Reyna knocked a goal to give the Americans a two-score advantage — the debris came in the moment of celebration.
“That was unfortunate because we want a really competitive game, we want a great atmosphere but we don’t want to get things thrown at us,” said Berhalter, according to The Associated Press. “It’s unsafe and someone can get hurt.”