CONMEBOL investigates Bentancur after bottle-throwing incident at Copa

The dust has not yet fully settled after Wednesday’s Copa America semi-final between Colombia and Uruguay. The 10-man Colombian team beat Uruguay to advance to the Copa America final, which will be played against Argentina on Sunday. The real event of the match, however, was the brawl between Uruguayan players, including Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur, and Colombian fans in the stands after a security failure at the stadium put the safety of the Uruguayan players’ families at risk.

According to Uruguayan football reporter Rodrigo Romano, South American football’s governing body CONMEBOL has now put 11 Uruguayan players, including Bentancur and Liverpool striker Darwin Nunez, on the list of those being investigated for their role in the altercation. CONMEBOL will examine all 11 players using video evidence and will issue possible sanctions and fines once the investigation is complete. No player will be sanctioned or suspended ahead of Uruguay’s third-place match against Canada at the Copa America.

URUGUAY DEVELOPMENT

At around 8 p.m., the AUF received the documents with the names of the eleven players who had participated in the final matches for CONMEBOL.

The documents contain the names, (shirt) numbers used in the competition and the reason attributed to them in order to be able to provide for possible subsequent sanctions.

The 11 players are:

02, Jose Maria Gimenez

03, Sebastian Caceres

04, Ronald Araujo

06, Rodrigo Bentancur

11, Facundo Pellistri

16, Mathias Olivera

17, Matias Vina

18, Brain Rodriguez

19, Darwin Nunez

21, Emiliano Martinez

23, Santiago Mele

For each player name there is film evidence as well as the reason for opening a disciplinary file.

You have until next Wednesday, January 17, 2021, to present your defense in writing.

After that date, a period will begin during which CONMEBOL will examine the matter and decide whether or not to impose a penalty on each of the above-mentioned players.

There are no preventive sanctions, so these players are fit and can play against Canada on Saturday.

The corresponding penalties must be served in the 2026 qualifying matches, which begin next September when Uruguay hosts Paraguay and then travels to Venezuela after the resumption of the World Cup.

If necessary, a fine may also be imposed.

Several Uruguayan players and staff went into the crowd after the end of the match to confront Colombian fans who had breached security into an area where families of Uruguayan players were present. Several Uruguayan players told the media that they feared their loved ones were in danger and acted to protect them.

Bentancur was not among the players who went to the stands, but he was caught on video throwing two objects into the crowd, including a bottle that hit a Uruguayan staff member on the side of the head, leaving him injured and bleeding.

The investigations announced today will be conducted solely by CONMEBOL and any sanctions resulting from this investigation would be limited to internationally sanctioned matches, in particular future World Cup qualifiers. No further information is currently available on sanctions from other world football associations, including FIFA or the FA.

Bentancur started against Colombia but was substituted in the first half after suffering an injury in a collision with one of his teammates. His status for the third-place match against Canada is unknown.