TThe Copa América football tournament held in the US this summer was characterized by intense physicality on the pitch. But although six yellow cards and one red were issued during Wednesday night’s semi-final, it ended up being the off-field action that caught the most attention.
A sea of yellow filled Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina – as Colombia fans far outnumbered those of their blue-clad rivals, Uruguay – but, amid the humid 90°F atmosphere, tensions They quickly became incandescent after the full whistle sent Uruguay home and Colombia into the final.
videos in the scene quickly went viral on social media, showing opposing spectators throwing punches and drinks at each other, and Uruguayan players – including Liverpool striker Darwin Núñez and Barcelona defender Ronald Araújo – climb into the stands to take part in the fight.
Núñez could be seen throwing several blows at the Colombian fans as his teammates tried to restrain him before referees appeared to separate the two sides.
The fight in the stands happened after a brief fight between the opposing players on the field, after a difficult match that saw favorites Uruguay lose to Colombia 1-0, despite having the advantage throughout the second half, after Colombian Daniel Muñoz was sent off for elbowing him an opponent. Colombia have now extended their unbeaten record to 28 games as they head to Miami to face Lionel Messi and Argentina for the South American title on Sunday.
After the confusion subsided, Uruguayan captain José María Giménez told reporters that his teammates acted in response to a group of Colombian fans who attacked the families of the Uruguayan players, who were sitting in a section near the touchline. “They attacked all of our families,” said Giménez, complaining about the lack of official security intervention. “This is a disaster. Our family is in danger. We had to get into the stands as quickly as possible to rescue our loved ones.”
Ignacio Alonso, president of the Uruguayan Football Federation, reiterated the explanation, telling reporters after the game: “The Uruguay players had an instinctive reaction that is natural, which is to defend and protect the children who were in that area of the stadium and were suffering attacks on their wives, their parents, their closest family members, their siblings. And it’s a parent’s reaction that is intuitively natural and very rational, given the events that surrounded them.”
ESPN commentator and former United States national team player Herculez Gomez echoed Uruguayans’ frustrations, calling the lack of security at the stadium “dangerously pathetic” in a post on X, while sharing footage of Núñez comforting his son after the accident. the altercation.
CONMEBOL, the The South American football body that organizes the Copa América condemned the violence in a declarationsaying that fans should channel their passion into the crowd and that “there is no place for intolerance and violence on and off the pitch”.
This story originally appeared on Time.com read the full story
