A teammate of Lionel Messi at Inter Miami appeared to strike a 16-year-old player during Wednesday's 2-2 draw at the Philadelphia Union.
Union youngster and future Manchester City player Cavan Sullivan received his first professional red card during a heated tie with Messi's Inter Miami. Tensions boiled over late in stoppage time when Sullivan's elder brother and teammate, Quinn, collapsed inside the penalty area following what looked like contact with defender Ian Fray.
Quinn subsequently appeared to body-slam Fray, which prompted Cavan to intervene as players from both squads converged on the scene, as per The Mirror US.
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Sullivan and Miami midfielder Yannick Bright were observed jostling, with the Italian seemingly striking the 16-year-old before order was restored. Following discussions with the players, the official brandished straight red cards to both Cavan and Bright.
Speaking after the game, Union interim boss Ryan Richter made his thoughts on the incident clear, also clarifying that they will be appealing the automatic one-match ban, which could rule him out of their next game against Austin FC.
"I didn't see Cavan's reaction as a red card. He grabs a guy's shirt and gets punched in the head twice," Richter said. "But when we're on the field, we have to stand up for each other.
"You know, it's funny, when it's brothers standing up for each other, I'm sure their dad is the one that told them, 'You never let something like this go.' But as a team, we have to always stand up for each other and, yeah, not go across the line where you're getting suspended for games and you're getting red cards.
"But that wasn't the case in this in this one. So hopefully we can review that and get what I think is the fair outcome from it."
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Following his red card, Bright will be unavailable for Inter Miami's next MLS fixture against Toronto FC on Saturday.
Bright has now been dismissed twice during the 2026 MLS campaign. He was shown his first straight red card in the 87th minute versus the Colorado Rapids, with his ban later increased to two games after MLS ruled he had breached the league's non-discrimination policy.
Beyond the controversy, Messi netted his first strike since the passing of his father Jorge, as Inter Miami were held to a thrilling draw.
The Argentine drifted inside former Birmingham City left-back Kai Wagner before drilling past goalkeeper Andre Blake to give Miami the lead. Messi was immediately mobbed by his teammates, including summer acquisition Casemiro, before lifting his hands and gesturing to the sky in an emotional homage to his late father.
Miami squandered their advantage and surrendered more ground in the battle for Eastern Conference supremacy. Philadelphia took the lead through Indiana Vassilev, only for Daniel Pinter and Messi to strike within five minutes of each other to flip the result on its head. Neil Pierre then leveled for the Union, as both teams were reduced to 10 men during a frantic spell in stoppage time.
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