Inaction by the official after Michael Boxall was allegedly the victim of racial abuse during Monday’s interntinal friendly between New Zealand and Qatar prompted the New Zealanders to boycott the second half, thus ending the game in defense of their teammate.
Boxall, who plays center-back for the Minnesota United in Major League Soccer, allegedly was racially abused by Qatar’s Yusuf Abdurisag. New Zealand Football issued a statement explaining the decision:
“Michael Boxall was racially abused during the first half of the game by a Qatari player. No official action was taken so the team have agreed not to come out for the second half of the match,” the statement reads.
Video from Sky Sport in the tweet below appears to show the incident that prompted New Zealand’s decision.
This was the supposed incident that led to the racial abuse from Qatar player Yusuf Abdurisag towards Michael Boxall.
🎥: Sky Sport, Stuff Sport pic.twitter.com/EdKqzsR8KI
— MNUFC NEWS (@mnufcnews) June 19, 2023
Further details of what constituted racial abuse against Boxall, who is of Samoan descent, haven’t been provided.
New Zealand Professional Footballers Association issued a statement in support of the team’s decision, saying it “stands unequivocally with its players” and that there “is no room for racism in our sport.”
NZPFA stands unequivocally with its players. We commend and support our players’ poised reaction in this challenging situation.
We have contacted the team and will work with @NZ_Football to support the players in any way required.
There is no room for racism in our sport.
— NZPFA (@nzpfa) June 19, 2023
