Columbian Soccer Player Makes Racist Gesture At Korean National Team

On November 10, The Korean National Soccer Team had what began as a friendly match with the Colombian team…

Tensions became strained about 17 minutes in when James Rodriguez of Colombia collided with Kim Jin Su and pulled him up by the jersey.

Kim Jin Su proceeded to quickly push Rodriguez’s arms away as Ki Sung Yueng approached resulting in Rodriguez diving to the ground, clutching his face.

As the two teams gathered to argue, Colombian player Edwin Cardona could be seen what many believe was a racist “slant-eye” gesture directly at Ki.

FIFA explicitly condemns any racist behaviors or actions from its players and, as recently as last year, employed an anti-racism taskforce to implement its regulations.

In a post-game interview, Ki Sung Yueng, who plays for Swansea City, condemned Cardona’s action.

“Overall, Colombian players played dirty today, but those kinds of plays are understandable within the context of the sport. But I cannot condone such racist behavior. Colombia has many players who play in international leagues, and to see that kind of behavior from one of them is very disappointing.”

— Ki Sung Yueng

Meanwhile, José Pékerman, the Colombian team’s manager, praised South Korea’s tactics during the match and stated that he did not see Cardona’s actions and that he cannot condemn what he did not see.