Why did the New York Red Bulls withdraw their youth teams from the Generation Adidas Cup?

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of what has allegedly occurred, is the fact that it involves players who are participating at youth level, something that demonstrates racism is not limited to adults who lack education, but also adolescents who are affected by that lack of learning as well.

Red Bulls pull youth teams from tournament after racial abuse

According to reports, the New York Red Bulls have withdrawn their U15 and U17 teams from the Generation Adidas Cup tournament following two alleged incidents of racial abuse against their players. The decision comes after the team alleged that U17 defender Eric Tai received racial abuse from a player with the Croatian side Hajduk Split. To be clear, the player in question was sent off by the referee, who heard and recognized the racist language allegedly being directed at Tai.

Sadly, the incident comes on the heels of another that occurred on Monday, when U17 goalkeeper Joshua Grant alleged that he was racially abused by a player from Mexico’s CF Monterrey. On that occasion, no official heard the language used such that the incident was not addressed on an official level. Be that as it may, a Red Bulls coach reported the incident to the match official which in turn resulted in an investigation being launched by MLS Next. It should also be said, that CF Monterrey suspended the player who was accused.

What have the Red Bulls said?

Given the sensitive nature of the situation, one can imagine that a clear and concise response was always going to be required. Yet, before one was given, it’s worth noting that the Red Bulls U17 players themselves released a statement on Thursday in which they criticized MLS for not taking action: “What has happened these past two games is completely inappropriate and has changed our team forever,” said the players. “The extreme lack of action taken by the league is unacceptable and has left a feeling of untrust and uncertainty in our safety and well-being while playing in this event and our games back home. We hope this situation will bring light to an ongoing problem in the game of football and in our world.”

That statement was then followed by an official statement from the club itself on Friday saying, “There is no room for discrimination around competitive play” before announcing that they would be withdrawing their teams from the tournaments as a consequence. Then, there was also MLS Next, the league’s youth soccer academy, which had its own response to the allegations stating that there were in fact three incidents of racial abuse as opposed to two, before addressing the Red Bulls’ decision to withdraw from the tournament:

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“Following three allegations of discriminatory language used during two recent GA Cup matches,” the statement read, “MLS NEXT immediately investigated and then issued suspensions in accordance with the MLS NEXT Disciplinary Code to the offending individuals for violating the MLS NEXT Safety & Wellbeing Policy. In addition, MLS NEXT immediately made resources available onsite to the affected players and clubs. ...MLS NEXT remains steadfast in its commitment to eradicating discriminatory and racial incidents at every level of the game and will continue to work with all players to properly educate, train, and swiftly address any incidents.”

Incidentally, the third incident that is referenced appears to have involved a Red Bulls player who used a banned term during the match with Monterrey. Consequently, the academy stated that due to the fact that the incident involved minors, no further details would be made available to the public. It is understood that for the remainder of the tournament, officials will now be required to stop matches should any player use a banned or racist term.