Messi cleared of wrongdoing after video of referee confrontation
Lional Messi will not be punished for trying to confront referees after Inter Miami’s 3-0 loss to LAFC on Saturday, the Professional Referees Organization said, ruling that the World Cup winner did not break MLS rules during the incident.
In a video shared on social media shortly after Saturday’s match at the LA Memorial Coliseum, Messi was seen entering through a door believed to lead to the referees’ locker room. His teammate Luis Suarez grabs his arm in an attempt to pull him away, with both men emerging from that door moments later in Suarez’s attempt to defuse the situation. It was initially unclear how close Messi had gotten to the officials’ locker room, but in a statement from PRO, which is responsible for all officiating duties in MLS and other American professional soccer leagues, they said the World Cup winner did not go far enough to put himself in danger of breaking league rules.
“After speaking with the match officials, we can confirm that Lionel Messi did not enter the officials’ dressing room,” PRO said in a statement on Sunday.
No match official filed a complaint against Messi after the match and an investigation concluded that he had not entered any restricted area during the incident.
MLS previously fined FC Cincinnati’s Matt Miazga three games after he entered the referee’s locker room after a playoff game against the New York Red Bulls, angered by the yellow card he received that would keep him out of the next playoff game. Miazga’s suspension was later reduced to two matches.
