DC United announced the suspension of forwards Taxi Fauntas and Nigel Roberta on Friday night for “potential violations of league policy”. The club “reported the matter promptly to league officials, at which point MLS began collecting all available information,” the club said.
The statement did not specify why Roberta and Fountas were suspended, but several people who witnessed the disciplinary action said. The Athletic On Friday, Fountas was accused of racially abusing Roberta during a recent training session. The same source said Roberta physically assaulted Fountas after hearing the slander.
DC United declined to comment further on the allegations on Friday.
Fountas was previously accused of racially abusing a game last season. Major League Soccer investigated the incident and said Inter Miami’s claim that Fauntas had defamed one of its players was “credible” but refused to discipline the player after failing to conclusively prove the conduct.
Early Friday morning, D.C. United announced the dismissal of the athletic trainer after the club discovered he had made “discriminatory hand gestures by individuals that appeared in photographs published on social media platforms on 20 July 2023”.
get deeper
MLS finds Fountas’ racial slur allegations ‘credible’
(Photo: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports)
