New York Red Bulls academy pulls out of 2024 GA Cup after alleged 'lack of action' by MLS after racist incidents against players on the club’s U17 team

The New York Red Bulls announced Friday they have pulled their U15 and U17 squads out of the 2024 GA cup over an alleged "extreme lack of action" from MLS organizers over their accusations of abuse.

In their Group Stage match against CF Monterrey on April 1, the U17 RBNY squad accused an opponent of racial abuse on the pitch. MLS Next released a statement after the incident saying it was aware of and investigating the allegations.

In the quarterfinals against Croatian side Hajduk Split on Thursday, a 1-1 (5-3) penalty shootout loss for the MLS academy side, the referee reduced the Croatian team to 10 players after recognizing alleged racist language aimed at a RBNY player during the match.

In a series of social media posts, RBNY players shared their disappointment with the situation, while advocating for support for their teammates. Joshua Grant, the victim of abuse against Monterrey, wrote on Instagram saying: "@mlsnext @mls - Why do we continue to get racially abused in such a big tournament? Why do players like myself continue to be called monkeys by international teams? Today, the same thing happened to my fellow teammate! Please do something."

Instagram/JGrant.27

That teammate was Ivorian-American defender Eric Tai, who was was labeled as one of the "most kind-hearted an respectful people I know" by academy member Tanner Rosborough on Instagram. The U.S. youth international posted that the "whole team is backing you" in his message to Tai.

Instagram/TannerRosborough

A statement from the club read: "The New York Red Bulls have decided to withdraw for the U15 and U17 Tournaments. There is no room for discrimination around competitive play. As an organization, we stand together with our players on and off the pitch."

After the first incident, the organizing body issued this statement: "MLS NEXT is aware of allegations of discriminatory language during yesterday's New York Red Bulls and CF Monterrey U-17 match, and a review is underway. MLS NEXT will have no further comment during the pendency of the review."

The Red Bulls U17 players issued a collective statement on Thursday via a social media post by U17 member Adri Mehetmi. "What has happened these past two games is completely inappropriate and has changed our team forever. The extreme lack of action taken by the league is unacceptable and has left a feeling of untrust and uncertainty in the hands of our safety and well-being while playing in this event and our games back home. We hope this situation will bring light to an ongoing problem in the game of football and in our world. Thank you." - U17 Red Bull Academy

Instagram/IamAdri6

MLS NEXT has stated they will not address the matter further until the pending investigation is complete. The 2024 GA Cup, a premier youth soccer tournament organized by MLS featuring all 29 MLS academies plus select others, wraps up on Sunday, April 7.