About a dozen Uruguayan national team players stormed the stands and got into a fight with some fans in the crowd after Uruguay's 1-0 loss to Colombia in the Copa America semifinals on Wednesday night at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The brawl lasted for several minutes before being broken up by stadium security. Uruguay players claim that rival fans had threatened their families who were watching the match, which led them to climb onto the stands. Among those who participated were Uruguay's star player Darwin Nunez and team captain Jose Maria Jimenez.
Jimenez claimed that fans were the aggressors and that players went into the stands to protect their families.
“They don't allow me to speak on the microphone so let me say something before they cut me off. I guess they're trying to stop me from saying anything about what's going on, but this is a catastrophe,” Jimenez said after the skirmish in the stands. “Be careful. There are families in the stands, little babies. It was a catastrophe. There were no police and we had to protect our families.”
“This is the fault of two or three people who drank too much and didn't know how to handle it,” Jimenez said.
CONMEBOL, South American soccer's governing body and organisers of the Copa Cup, condemned the incident and announced it would open an investigation into the skirmish.
“CONMEBOL strongly condemns any act of violence affecting football,” the organization said in a statement after the match. “Our actions are based on the belief that football connects and unites us through its positive values.”
After the match ended, players from both teams faced off on the pitch, marking the climax of a tense and intense match between the South American teams.
To read more from the Washington Examiner, click here
Uruguay coach Marcelo Bielsa addressed the incident in his post-match press conference, acknowledging there was animosity between the players but believed it was over once the game was over.
“I thought the incident ended with an altercation in midfield and when I saw it I went into the dressing room,” Bielsa said. “I thought they were thanking the fans for their support but unfortunately I saw that there was something wrong there.”
