After losing the Leagues Cup final in Seattle to the Sounders by a 3-0 scoreline on Sunday, a number of 
Inter Miami CF players were involved in a scuffle on the pitch after the game.
The coming together had many flashpoints, but began with Luis Suárez and Sergio Busquets.
Upon the final whistle, Suarez immediately went up to Sounders midfielder Obed Vargas and exchanged choice words before the pair were separated. Busquets came over, made a fist and made contact with Vargas’ face. The teams immediately came together after that.
Several Sounders players were put in headlocks, punches were thrown and then Suarez spit on Sounders security director Gene Ramirez.
Punishments are expected, but nothing has been determined yet as the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee continues to go through the footage.
“The Leagues Cup Organizing Committee is reviewing the incidents at the end of the game and will proceed accordingly,” a spokesperson told GIVEMESPORT.
The bigger question is whether or not any players will be impacted this season. The Leagues Cup is its own entity and any punishment will begin with future Leagues Cup tournaments, repercussions that Suarez and Busquets may not ever experience. Both are still determining their future and if they’ll continue playing beyond 2025.
There is, however, precedent for MLS to add additional suspensions in league play for incidents that occurred in the Leagues Cup.
In 2019, Real Salt Lake head coach Mike Petke was given a three-game Leagues Cup suspension for actions directed towards officials following a loss to Tigres. MLS then handed Petke an additional three-game league suspension and a fine.
RSL eventually opted to terminate Petke’s contract before the suspension ended. He has not coached since.
In a U.S. Open Cup match in 2015, then-Sounders forward Clint Dempsey was given a six-game suspension in that competition for ripping up the referee’s notebook. MLS then added another three-game suspension in league matches as well.
MLS very likely won’t take action until the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee completes their review and hands out their own punishment.
High-ranking officials at other MLS clubs and fans alike will be awaiting the decisions by the Leagues Cup Organizing Committee and, potentially, Major League Soccer itself.
“Unfortunately, that is going to take some of the attention away from what was a great Sounders performance,” Seattle head coach Brian Schmetzer said after the match. “I can take that as a compliment that their players were frustrated, and frustrations led to some things that shouldn’t happen on the field.”
Miami head coach Javier Mascherano added: “I don’t have anything to say because I was far from the acts that happened and didn’t really see. Obviously, you never like this type of thing, but if there was a reaction, possibly there was also instigation.”
Miami host Seattle on September 16 in regular season play, now a can’t-miss match.
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