Chaos in a U-20 match: Guyana and Anguilla staged a pitched battle and were disqualified

The CONCACAF Under-20 qualifiers for the 2027 World Cup between Azerbaijan and Uzbekistan were shrouded in scandal after the match between Guyana and Anguilla ended in a pitched battle that led to the disqualification of both teams.

The match, which was 5-0 in favor of Guyana, was suspended after 86 minutes when the players of the two teams faced each other on the playing field after the expulsion of an Anguillian soccer player.

As explained by the Guyana Football Federation (GFF), after the red card, there were verbal exchanges and pushes between players from both teams. Amid the tension, an Anguillian player “ran to a group of players and appeared to have hit a Guyanese player”, causing

a wider confrontation.

The situation escalated rapidly and became uncontrollable.

The referee showed five red cards for Anguilla players, which left the team without the minimum number of players needed and forced the regulatory suspension of the match.

The GFF pointed out that all the players and members of the coaching staff returned to the hotel without problems and that there were no reports of serious injuries. For its part, the Anguilla Football Association (AFA) said in a statement that it does not tolerate such behavior “under any circumstances” and that it will carry out an internal investigation, in line with the CONCACAF disciplinary framework and its own code of

conduct.

After analyzing the evidence and arbitration reports, the CONCACAF Disciplinary Committee decided to immediately exclude both teams from the competition. In addition, all the games they had to play for the rest of the tournament were counted as 3-0 losses to their

respective rivals.

The agency also applied individual and economic sanctions. In the case of Anguilla, Keondre Belle, Keante Brooks, Shemor Browne, Khalique Jackson and Cardinae Rennie received four suspension dates. For Guyana, Mateo Clark, Shaquan David, Sheldon Kendall and Max Robinson were banned for the same number of matches

.

The suspensions must be fulfilled in the next official commitments of each selected in the Under-20 category, either in competitions organized by CONCACAF or FIFA. If they cannot be completed in that division, the sanctions will be transferred to the

next higher category.