Edinson Cavani, who was recently handed a three-match ban and a £100,000 fine by the Football Association, has received support from his fellow countrymen. Cavani was banned and fined following his use of a racially offensive term used in a story he shared on Instagram. Now, the Uruguayan Football Players’ Association want his suspension overturned.
Uruguayan Football Players’ Association Want Edinson Cavani Suspension Overturned
Cavani Pleaded Guilty
Following the game at Southampton in November in which Cavani scored twice for Manchester United, the striker shared a post on his Instagram account. The story used a racially offensive term, however, the post was soon deleted and Cavani apologised.
He said: “The message I posted after the game on Sunday was intended as an affectionate greeting to a friend, thanking him for his congratulations after the game.
“The last thing I wanted to do was cause offence to anyone. I am completely opposed to racism and deleted the message as soon as it was explained that it can be interpreted differently. I would like to sincerely apologise for this.”
Following a FA investigation, Cavani was found to be in breach of rule E3. The Red Devils star pleaded guilty to the charge and accepted his ban and fine.
Statement From the Uruguayan Players Association About Edinson Cavani Suspension
Following the result and subsequent punishment, the A.F.U has called on the Football Association to overturn the ban. The statement was shared on fellow Uruguayan Diego Godin’s official Twitter account.
“The undersigned members of the Uruguayan Players Association (A.F.U) composed of both the men and women professional and amateur sectors, including the different types, would like to state the following in response to the sanction imposed by the English Football Association on our colleague Edinson Cavani:
“Firstly, we must condemn the arbitrary conduct of the English Football Association. Far from condemning racism, the English FA has itself committed a discriminatory act against the culture and way of life of the Uruguayan people.
“The sanction shows the English FA’s biased, dogmatic and ethnocentric vision that only allows a subjective interpretation to be made from its particular and excluding conclusion, however flawed it may be.
“Edinson Cavani has never committed any conduct that could be interpreted as racist. He merely used a common expression in Latin America to affectionately address a loved one or close friend.
“To sustain that the only way to obtain a valid interpretation in life is that which lies in the minds of the managers of the English FA is actually a true discriminatory act, which is completely reprehensible and against Uruguayan culture.
“We would therefore like to publicly defend Edinson Cavani’s impeccable character and of course our country’s culture.
“We are all against any kind of discrimination; however, unfortunately, through its sanction, the English FA expresses absolute ignorance and disdain for a multicultural vision of the world, respectful of its plurality, by erroneously, unilaterally and rigidly imposing its anti-racist rules, the basis of which we support but are obviously not realistically applicable to the case in question here.
“It has not just punished one person, but also our whole culture, our way of life, which is truly a discriminatory and racist act.
“Lastly, we urge the English FA to review its decision-making processes related to these issues immediately so that it does not commit any similar injustice ever again. Its regulations should take into account the plurality of people’s ways of life and cultures. The first rule to fight any racism is to respect such different ways of life and cultures.
“By virtue of the foregoing, we request the FA to immediately overturn the sanction imposed on Edinson Cavani and reinstate his good name and honour in the world that has been so unfairly tarnished by this reprehensible action.”
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