The US national team’s difficult exit from the Copa America group stage took a controversial turn after the home side’s 1-0 defeat to Uruguay on Monday when one of the referees refused to shake hands with US captain Christian Pulisic on the field.
The incident occurred while both teams were still on the field, with Uruguay celebrating as the American players processed their earlier-than-expected departure. As Pulisic quickly shook hands with head coach Gregg Berhalter, he spotted a few members of the refereeing crew, caught their attention and pointed to the center circle.
He then moved towards the referees he saw, made another comment and pointed to the center of the field before shaking hands with one of the referees. However, the next referee refrained from the handshake and held his hands behind his back as Pulisic extended his hand. The American captain made one more comment before continuing.
It is unclear what Pulisic said at any point during the exchange.
The USMNT were in a do-or-die game on Monday to salvage their Copa America campaign, but came up short against a Uruguay team considered a dark horse candidate to win the whole thing. The high-pressure situation was made even more bitter by the refereeing team, led by Peru’s Kevin Ortega. Several hard tackles went unpunished by Ortega and company, while players from both teams left the match due to injuries. Uruguay’s Maximiliano Araujo left in the first half on a stretcher and wearing a neck brace, while American Folarin Balogun also left the match. game before half time with a hip injury after a collision with Sergio Rochet. USMNT’s Joe Scally also suffered a possible leg injury before half-time after a challenge from Darwin Nunez, who was shown a yellow card afterwards.
Members of the U.S. team mostly chose not to talk about the referee after the game, but Berhalter did answer a question about the game’s only goal. Mathias Olivera scored from a header in the 66th minute, but the goal required a lengthy video review before Uruguay was given the green light. The refereeing team checked for offside and ruled that American Chris Richards kept Olivera offside, but Berhalter said he was surprised by the decision.
“It’s actually quite crazy,” he said. “I don’t understand it. I feel like I know the rule quite well. I feel like we had the pictures, they showed how the rule could be interpreted and it’s an offside goal. It’s disappointing, it really is like that, but that happens.” in football and of course we have to live with that.”
The USMNT finished third in Group C, behind first-place Uruguay and second-place Panama. Although the US was expected to advance to the quarterfinals, they ultimately fell short, first with a surprise 2-1 loss to Panama last Thursday. The Copa America marks the USMNT’s final competitive matches, outside of the Concacaf Nations League and Gold Cup, until the 2026 World Cup on home soil.