An All-Star game between top MLS players and their counterparts from Mexico's Liga MX was paused Wednesday in Los Angeles due to another incident of fans using a homophobic chant.
Spectators at Los Angeles' Banc of California Stadium started using the chant early in the first half, leading to a 10-minute delay and a threat of ejections.
'Any individuals participating in the discriminatory chant will be ejected from the stadium,' read a warning from the MLS on the scoreboard.
According to Sporting News, the chant is believed to have started with fans of the Mexican national team in the early 2000s, and uses a Spanish-language homophobic Sur which roughly translates to 'gay prostitute.' It is typically used during opponents' goal kicks as the keeper boots the ball downfield.
The MLS All-Stars ended up winning a shootout after playing to a 1-1 draw with their counterparts from Mexico.
Spectators at Los Angeles' Banc of California Stadium started using the chant early in the first half, leading to a 10-minute delay. 'Any individuals participating in the discriminatory chant will be ejected from the stadium,' read a warning from the MLS on the scoreboard
Players from both teams wait for the All-Star game to resume during a 10-minute delay over fans' use of a homophobic chant
Soccer officials have attempted to stop anti-gay chants among Mexican fans, and even instituted a three-step protocol which was used in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
The first step is to stop the game and issue a warning to fans. But if that doesn't work, officials have the right to take players off the field and into the locker room, and can even abandon the match, if needed.
Wednesday, FIFA agreed to reduce Mexico's punishment for anti-gay chants heard during the Olympic qualifying matches in March, Mexican soccer officials said Wednesday.
The Mexican soccer federation said it had been notified by FIFA that Mexico's men team will have to play only one game without fans, instead of two as was originally imposed.
MLS fans at the All-Star Shooting Challenge during the 2021 MLS All-Star Skills Challenge at Banc of California Stadium on August 24 in Los Angeles
The ban will be applied September 2, when Mexico's national team plays Jamaica at the beginning of the region's World Cup qualifiers. The game will take place at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City.
The Mexican soccer league petitioned FIFA asking it to reconsider the original sanctions on the grounds the punishment would affect Mexico's national team even though the chants happened in a game played by the Sub23 team.
Soccer officials have attempted to stop anti-gay chants at Mexican national team matches.
'It's not the intention with which you shout or with which you chant. It's how the other receive it,' Mexican federation president Yon de Luisa told reporters earlier this year. 'If anybody feels it's a discriminatory act, then it is not something that we should include in a conversation. That is no longer a debate. If it is discriminatory, we should avoid it.'
MLS All-Star players celebrate after FC Dallas forward Ricardo Pepi (24) scored the winning goal in a penalty shoot out against the Liga MX All-Stars during the MLS All-Star soccer match