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Five of the six Major League Soccer games scheduled for Wednesday were postponed, including LAFC’s contest at Real Salt Lake and the Galaxy’s home game against Seattle, as players on those teams chose not to play in a statement against racial injustice.
The decision by the teams came on the same day that games in the NBA, WNBA and Major League Baseball were also postponed as players protested the police shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, Wisconsin, on Sunday.
MLS said Wednesday’s games will be rescheduled.
LAFC traveled to Salt Lake early in the afternoon for its game.
“I’m very proud of my teammates, I’m proud of RSL (Real Salt Lake) also for making a stance and saying we’re not going to play,” LAFC midfielder Mark-Anthony Kaye said to LAFC.com. “We had discussions earlier within the team about how we wanted to make a stance and showing our solidarity with the NBA teams that have opted out of playing their playoff games.
“We realized that it was a great opportunity to really make some noise about an ongoing situation that no matter how much the media covers it, it never goes away. … It is a real problem. This is a good opportunity to continue the conversation and we’re using our power right now, our voices right now by saying we’re not going to play because it is unacceptable what’s going on in the world.”
By the time MLS sent out a statement, the first of Wednesday’s six games (Orlando City SC-Nashville SC) had already kicked off, adding more confusion to the evening.
The Inter Miami-Atlanta United game was scheduled for 5:30 p.m. Inter Miami players were on the field, but Atlanta United players were still in the locker room for approximately 15 minutes until they came out to officially announce the game was not being played.
Major League Soccer’s initial statement said: “The entire Major League Soccer family is deeply saddened and horrified by the senseless shooting of Jacob Blake and events in Kenosha. We continue to stand with the black community throughout our country, including our players and employees and share in their pain, anger and frustration
“The entire Major League Soccer family unequivocally condemns racism and has always stood for equality, but we need to do more to take tangible steps to impact change. We will continue to work with our players, our clubs and the broader soccer community to harness our collective power to fight for equality and social justice.”
Later in the evening, the league released another statement, saying it “made the decision to postpone the remaining five games.”
“I think we as players, we want to play the game that we love,” Seattle Sounders midfielder Cristian Roldan said. “But there are so many things going on in the world, in this country, that matter more.
“Tonight is a case where we want to use our platform to educate and help shine a light on racial inequality, to show it matters and we can’t just go about daily life as usual anymore. Regardless of race, everyone deserves …read more
Source:: Los Angeles Daily News
