Tottenham lose appeal against Rodrigo Bentancur’s seven-game suspension

Tottenham Hotspur have seen their appeal against Rodrigo Bentancur’s seven-match ban rejected.

Bentancur was handed a seven-match ban and fined £100,000 by the Football Association (FA) after he said Tottenham team-mate Son Heung-min and his cousins ​​”all look the same” during an interview on TV show Por La Camiseta, which broadcast in the midfielder’s home country of Uruguay.

The 27-year-old denied the original FA charge and Spurs appealed against the sanction, which they described as “severe”. Tottenham’s appeal could have only reduced Bentancur’s ban to six games.

An independent complaints body confirmed the complaint had been rejected on Tuesday morning.

In a joint statement with The Frank Soo Foundation, which supports East and Southeast Asians in football, anti-discrimination organization Kick It Out said it had received more complaints about the Spurs appeal than the incident itself.

“Many of the reports from the East and Southeast Asian community and elsewhere told us how angry and disappointed they were with the club’s actions and how it prolonged the pain of those affected by the original incident,” the statement said.

“We know this has been an upsetting episode for many fans and hope the club will now reflect on its decision and how it can seek to engage with the community.

“The number of reports to Kick It Out over recent seasons shows that more education is needed to highlight East and South East Asian racism in football and we would encourage clubs to tackle this in the same way as other forms of discrimination.”

Bentancur has missed Tottenham’s last five Premier League games and will remain unavailable for Sunday’s game against Liverpool and Wednesday’s Carabao Cup quarter-final against Manchester United. His first game back could be the trip to Nottingham Forest on December 26.

Although he has been suspended domestically, Bentancur remains eligible to play in Tottenham’s Europa League matches.

This season, Bentancur has played 10 Premier League games and five in Europe, including last Thursday’s 1-1 draw against Rangers.

GO DEEPER

Rodrigo Bentancur’s seven-game ban explained: What the Spurs player did and what he will miss

(Malcolm Couzens/Getty Images)