New Zealand pull out of friendly reporting racist insult – 6/19/2023 – Sport

The New Zealand national football team abandoned the match they were playing against Qatar, this Monday (19), in Ritzing, Austria. Player Michael Boxall said he heard racial abuse from an opponent, and his team decided to stop the friendly at half-time.

“Michael Boxall received racist insults in the first half from a Qatari player. The referee took no action, which is why the team decided not to return to the second half”, published the New Zealand federation.

The Oceania selection was winning by 1-0 at the small Sonnensee Stadium, at 40 minutes of the initial stage, when there was an argument. The New Zealand players were particularly irritated by opponent Yusuf Abdurisag.

Captain Joe Bell argued at length with Austrian referee Manuel Schüttengruber, to no avail in his claims. At halftime, he was responsible for telling Qatar’s coach, the Portuguese Carlos Queiroz, that there would be no second half.

“Apparently two players on the field exchanged words. Who was first, who was second, it’s just between them. The New Zealand players decided to support their teammate. And obviously our team supported our player,” said Queiroz.

“They decided to abandon the game without witnesses. The referee didn’t listen, the dugouts didn’t listen. It was just an argument between two players. It’s a new story, a new chapter in football, which, of course, nobody can understand,” he added. .

The Portuguese also asked FIFA (International Football Federation) to take action. “Now we will let the football authorities make a decision about what happened here in this friendly. I think it is clear that this case will be watched.”

Boxall, who reported the alleged offenses to the referee and teammates, is a 34-year-old defender. Born in Auckland, New Zealand, he has a family of origin in Samoa. Immediately after the game, the defender preferred not to grant interviews.

The case was not the only one of its kind on the day. A friendly between the under-21 teams of Ireland and Kuwait, also in Austria, was also interrupted. The Irish said they heard racist abuse from an opponent who was on the bench.

With information from AFP and Reuters