The soccer crazed country of Uruguay reacted angrily on Friday a day after their home town hero, Luis Suarez, was banned for nine matches (including the remainder of the World Cup). The ban also will carry over into Uruguay’s next nine international games which officially rules him out of next year’s Copa America tournament as well. In addition to the ban on Uruguay, Suarez is banned from playing with his club team Liverpool and all soccer stadiums for the next four months.
Uruguay has announced that they will officially appeal the ban imposed by FIFA and have even discussed boycotting their round of 16 game against Colombia on Saturday.
The biting controversy is the third such incident against Saurez and the fourth suspension he has faced in as many years. Despite all this, Uruguayans unanimously supported their star on Friday making sure their voices were heard.
"They're acting as if he were a criminal, a terrorist," said Maria Cardozo, a 48 year-old administrative worker.
"I don't want to get into conspiracy theories, but it seems that FIFA isn't interested in letting small countries such as Uruguay advance," said 62-year-old lawyer Andres Ramirez. "The punishment is too strong for the foul," FA president Wilmer Valdez told the media.
As Suarez returned home to Montevideo on Friday, he was greeted to a hero’s welcome as hundreds of fans and Suarez supporters waited for him at the airport to show their love and admiration for the maligned star. The rage continued outside the arrivals gate as fans called the ban, “unfair”, “exaggerated”, “unjust”, and “hypocritical.” Fans even went so far as to accuse English fans of placing termites inside Uruguay player’s bedrooms at camp.
One of Suarez’s supporters is Uruguayan president, Jose Mujuica who believes that the punishment occurred because of a British based ‘witch-hunt’ against Uruguay and Suarez. He urged fans and reporters to leave Suarez alone.
"What is incomprehensible is the vitriol with which the English press, in particular, have gone after the Uruguayan. Far worse things have happened on the pitch, even where English players are concerned," said Uruguayan Andreas Campomar, author of "Golazo! A History of Latin American Football".
"For many Latin Americans the ban will have wider repercussions. It will be construed as the usual high-handedness Europe employs in relation to Latin America. A case of one rule for them and one rule for us."
RELATED: Is Uruguay's Luis Suárez Good For The Sport?
Uruguay’s coach, Oscar Tabarez resigned on Friday from his position with FIFA in their Technical Study group, which consists of experts who analyze international matches. Tabarez addressed the media on Friday, refusing to take any questions about Suarez, but did read a statement before leaving:
"It is not wise or prudent to be in an organization with people, those who exerted pressure to promote this decision and those who rendered the punishment, who managed procedures and values very different to those I have. Therefore, in the coming days, I will file my resignation to that position formally.”
Tabrarez went on to say that FIFA has made Suarez a “scapegoat”, and blamed the English speaking media for attacking Suarez after the match, compelling FIFA to hand down a more severe punishment.
He concluded his statement by issuing a message directly to Suarez himself:
"To conclude, to Luis Suarez, to Luis Suarez the person, who has lived with us and worked with us, someone we know better than anyone else, he will never be alone."
Diego Suarez, is Luis’s younger brother, and is also a soccer player. He too believed that FIFA’s decision was “unbelievable” and only managed to add that he was extremely saddened by what happened.
"They clearly wanted to kick Suarez out of the World Cup. Uruguay is a small country that eliminated two big nations like Italy and England and it doesn't benefit FIFA to let Uruguay continue playing," said Juan Jose Monzillo at the airport in Montevideo.
Not everyone shares the same sentiments about Suarez as most of Uruguay does. Alcides Ghiggia, another Uruguayan soccer hero, scored the game winning goal in the World Cup final in 1950 when Uruguay shocked Brazil on their own soil, supported the ban.
Although Ghiggia would love to see the Uruguay’s story come full circle 64 years later, he strongly believes that Suarez did deserve the ban.
“I don’t know what this kid thinks and what goes through his head…Whether you’re Uruguayan or of another nationality, you always have to reproach these things on the field, this is not a war.”
Former Brazilian star, Ronaldo and current record holder for most goals scored in World Cup history also believed the punishment was fair.
Uruguay plays Saturday against Colombia at 4:00PM EST in the famed Estadio de Marcana in Rio de Janiero. The next step in this ongoing Suarez saga will be when Uruguay’s appeal goes before the FIFA appeal committee. If the appeal is rejected as it expected to, Uruguay may choose to take their case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
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