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Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez appeared to spit on a Seattle Sounders staff member amid heightened tensions following Seattle’s 3-0 rout to win the 2025 Leagues Cup final on Sunday.
A shoving match between the two teams broke out almost immediately after the final whistle.
Seattle Sounders midfielder Obed Vargas (not pictured) lies on the ground after being pushed during an altercation against Inter Miami after the Sounders won a Leagues Cup final soccer match on Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Videos posted on social media showed Suárez grab Sounders midfielder Obed Vargas around the neck as they walked on the pitch. Several other players joined the skirmish, including Miami’s Sergio Busquets, who appeared to punch Vargas in the face.
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But the scuffle escalated when clips posted on social media showed Suárez arguing with a Sounders staff member before appearing to spit in his face.
Suárez, 38, was eventually separated from the man. The Athletic identified the staff member as Sounders security director Gene Ramirez.
Fox News Digital requested comment from Inter Miami and the Sounders regarding Suárez’s actions.
Inter Miami forward Luis Suárez, third from left, is separated from Seattle Sounders players and staff as Sounders midfielder Kalani Kossa-Rienzi, center right facing, holds a staff member back during a fight after the Sounders won the Leagues Cup final soccer match Sunday, Aug. 31, 2025, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
Sounders coach Brian Schmetzer lamented the post-match “frustrations” but insisted he would not allow that to be “the story.”
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“Unfortunately, that is going to take some of the attention away from a great performance by the Seattle Sounders,” Schmetzer said, via ESPN. “Their players were frustrated and that led to some things happening on the field that shouldn’t happen on the field.
“I’m going to shut that down, because that shouldn’t be the story. The story of the game is not what happened after the game. I had a quiet moment with [Lionel] Messi on the field [after the game] and we talked and we tried to push it aside.
“That’s the story.”
Inter Miami CF forward Luis Suarez against Tigres UANL at Chase Stadium on Aug. 20, 2025. (Sam Navarro/Imagn Images)
Messi was not involved in the post-match scuffle.
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Sunday was not Suárez’s first controversy. He has bitten players on several occasions, most notably Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini during the group stage of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
FIFA banned him as a result, ending his participation in that World Cup.
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