New York Red Bulls U15 and U17 teams have withdrawn from the Generation Adidas tournament following racial abuse from CF Monterrey and Hadjuk Split players in recent days. The move is a shock to the tournament as the U15 team had advanced to the quarter finals of the competiton.
This move comes after little to no repercussions for the teams following the alleged on-field abuse. Both instances occurred to the U17 team. Defender Eric Tai and goalkeeper Joshua Grant were on the receiving end of abuse from players on the opposing teams. The team released a brief statement about their exit from the tournament with little in the way of detail.
Such a move brings to light the issues around racial abuse in the game that has been rampant in places like Spain with high profile players like Vinicius Jr. of Real Madrid. Due the lack of attention paid to it by Major League Soccer, the team decided it best to pull the players from the competition.
More to come as the story develops.
photo by Matt Kremkau