“Absolute joke; Need to investigate this sh*t”- Fans slam MLS over Jeremy Ebobisse ‘racism’ controversy

The MLS has been accused of being too lenient on the recent racist incident in the league

“Absolute joke; Need to investigate this sh*t”- Fans slam MLS over Jeremy Ebobisse ‘racism’ controversy

Dante Vanzeir of the New York Red Bulls has been suspended for six games in the MLS for racist comments. The Belgian has also been handed an undisclosed fine. The incident took place in the Bulls’ match against the San Jose Earthquakes, where Earthquakes’ forward Jeremy Ebobisse said he had heard a racist comment by a member of the opposition team.

Vanzeir, Red Bulls coach Gerhard Struber and the team all issued apologies on Monday. The Belgian was also told to participate in league-mandated training and education sessions, as well as a restorative practices program.

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The incident has shaken the entirety of the MLS, which has a clear, no-racism stance. The comments were said to not be directed to Ebobisse, as the forward himself cleared it up. The forward believed that the comments were directed towards the whole team in general, perhaps not as an insult, but that he had definitely heard the racist comment.

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Fans react to racism in the MLS

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The immediate outburst of the incident was the Earthquakes players walking off the pitch for 21 minutes. However, Gerhard Struber, the NY Red Bulls manager, refused to take Vanzeir off, despite protests from teammates.

The MLS community is also visibly shaken by the whole incident. Fans are wondering about the loose punishments involved. The supporters believe that Vanzeir should have been handed stricter bans and heftier fines.

The MLS is being targeted for not imposing harsher punishments for those involved. Even the referee and the manager of the Bulls are not safe from the fans. It remains to be seen what the league will do the next time there is a racist incident on the field.

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