Inter Miami striker Luis Suarez has been given a six-game ban for spitting at a Seattle Sounders’ staff member following his side’s Leagues Cup final defeat.
The Sounders triumphed 3-0 in the game before a melee broke out after the full-time whistle, which saw Suarez have to be held back by team-mates before he was seen spitting at a member of the opposing team’s staff.
A statement from the Leagues Cup disciplinary committee said Suarez’s suspension would only apply to next year’s edition of the tournament, although Major League Soccer “reserves the right” to impose additional punishment.
Miami midfielder and Suarez’s former Barcelona team-mate Sergio Busquets threw a punch at Seattle’s Obed Vargas while Miami defender Tomás Aviles was also involved in aggressive behavior.
Busquets has been hit with a two-game ban while Aviles will be suspended for three games for participating in violent conduct.
Seattle coaching staff member Steven Lenhart has also been suspended for five games.
It is not the first legnthy ban imposed by 38-year-old Suarez having been involved in several controversial incidents during his career.
In 2011, while at Liverpool, Suarez was given an eight-match ban after being found guilty of racially abusing Manchester United left-back Patrice Evra.
He has also served bans for separate biting incidents while playing for Ajax, Liverpool and Uruguay respectively, including at the 2014 World Cup.
Suarez statement after spitting ban
Suarez has since apoligised for the incident, posting a statement on his Instagram page.
“It was a moment of much tension and frustration, where just after the game ended things happened that shouldn’t have happened but that doesn’t justify my reaction,” he wrote.
“I made a mistake and sincerely apologize. It’s not the image I want to give in front of my family, that suffers because of my mistakes, in front of my club, that also doesn’t deserve seeing themselves affected by something like this.”
Inter Miami then also released a statement, saying the club “condemns the altercations that took place following the conclusion of the Leagues Cup Final.”
