Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has been charged by the Football Association (FA) for an alleged misconduct breach related to a comment he made about teammate Son Heung-min on Uruguayan television.
During an interview on Canal 10 in June, Bentancur was asked for a Spurs player’s shirt. He responded by saying, “Sonny’s? It could be Sonny’s cousin too as they all look the same.”
The comment sparked outrage, with British anti-discrimination charity Kick It Out receiving a “significant number” of complaints. Bentancur subsequently apologized to Son and Spurs skipper Hugo Lloris, acknowledging that he had “made a mistake.”
The FA has now charged Bentancur with an alleged breach of its rules in relation to a media interview. The statement from the FA reads:
“It’s alleged that the Tottenham midfielder has breached FA Rule E3.1 as he acted in an improper manner and/or used abusive and/or insulting words and/or brought the game into disrepute.
“It’s further alleged that this constitutes an ‘aggravated breach’ which is defined in FA Rule E3.2, as it included a reference, whether express or implied, to nationality and/or race and/or ethnic origin.”
Bentancur has until September 19 to respond to the charge. The FA’s investigation comes amid a wider crackdown on racism and discrimination in football. In 2020, former Manchester United striker Edinson Cavani was banned for three games and fined £100,000 for using the Spanish term “negrito” (small black person) in a social media post.
The FA’s decision to charge Bentancur sends a clear message that it will not tolerate any form of discrimination or abuse in the game. It remains to be seen how the case will be resolved, but it is likely that Bentancur will face a significant punishment if found guilty.
