In last Sunday’s North American Leagues Cup final, the Seattle Sounders defeated Inter Miami 3-0. A fierce post-match brawl broke out between the two sides, involving multiple players and staff members. The tournament’s Disciplinary Committee announced the penalty decisions on Friday local time, with Suárez suspended for 6 matches and Busquets banned for 3 matches.
The 38-year-old Suárez was handed a six-match Leagues Cup suspension for spitting at Seattle Sounders security director Gene Ramirez during the chaos and being caught on camera stepping on his foot—this means he will miss all of next year’s Leagues Cup.
Busquets, meanwhile, was suspended for two matches after throwing a punch at Sounders midfielder Obed Vargas during the altercation. Inter Miami center-back Avilés was banned for three matches for repeatedly throwing punches in the scuffle.
Additionally, Steven Lenhart, a member of Seattle’s coaching staff and former San Jose Earthquakes player, was also suspended for five matches due to violent conduct.All
suspended players and coaches must serve their remaining banned matches in future Leagues Cups and will also face fines. Major League Soccer (MLS) stated that it will still conduct a further disciplinary investigation into the incident, and the relevant individuals have the right to file an appeal through the players' union.
