The Football Association (FA) has suspended Uruguayan midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur of London’s Tottenham Hotspur for seven matches due to a racist joke directed at his teammate Son Heung-min.
This summer, a video appeared on social media featuring Bentancur, where a television host asks him for the jersey of his team partner. Bentancur responds, "Sonny’s? It could be Sonny’s cousin too, as they all look the same.” The player later apologized to Son publicly on social media.
Despite Bentancur's public apology, the FA charged him with "aggravated breach" of its rules for the "reference to nationality and/or race and/or ethnic origin." Besides, the midfielder has been fined £120,000.
Bentancur signed a contract with Tottenham on February 1, 2022, which runs until 2026. He made his debut for the Spurs on February 5, 2022, coming on as a substitute in the 77th minute of an FA Cup match against Brighton. Prior to joining Tottenham, he played for Turin's Juventus and Argentina's Boca Juniors.