Referee ends USMNT rout over Mexico early amid anti-gay chants

The United States men’s national team 3-0 win over Mexico in the Concacaf Nations League semifinal on Thursday was halted before the completion of second-half stoppage time due to the referee’s discretion.

Referee Ivan Barton, who had already handed out four red cards in the game, paused the game in the 89th minute due to anti-gay chanting heard from the crowd at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Play resumed, and with four minutes left to go in injury time, Barton blew the final whistle after a goal kick by U.S. keeper Matt Turner was once again greeted by the anti-gay chant.

Concacaf told ESPN after the match that the game was not abandoned due to federation protocols regarding the chant, but at the “referee’s discretion.”

The Mexican Football Federation (FMF) has struggled in recent years with curtailing the anti-gay chant that is typically yelled during opposing goal kicks.

FIFA has issued fines to the FMF because of the action of fans, which included a $108,000 sanction in January for the chant at the 2022 World Cup.

The FMF has made attempts to eradicate the discriminatory yells through avenues such as public service announcements, social media posts, and pre-game announcements from players.

Concacaf also announced earlier in the day that they had relaunched a “‘What’s Wrong is Wrong’ Anti-Discrimination Campaign” that aims to “raise awareness about the importance of inclusivity and equality.” As part of the campaign, Concacaf said there would be increased security and a “more proactive approach to ejecting fans who engage in discriminatory chants.”

Whether U.S Soccer acts in a more rigid manner, remains up in the air. In April, the federation enacted a policy that could punish discriminatory chants during games. If derogatory chants are heard, a team could be banned from taking part in an international game in the U.S. for two years. A second violation would result in a five-year sanction, and a third would be a permanent ban.

A source told ESPN earlier this year that as long as Mexico makes a good-faith attempt to eradicate the chants, there wouldn’t be any sanctions. There’s also uncertainty about what threshold would need to be crossed for the ban to potentially go into effect.