Everton Luiz leaves pitch in tears after racial abuse in Serbia

Jon Arnold

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Everton Luiz leaves pitch in tears after racial abuse in Serbia image

Partizan midfielder Everton Luiz left the field in tears Sunday after suffering racist abuse during his team's 1-0 victory over Rad in Belgrade, Serbia.

Fans persisted in the abuse despite warnings from the referee and public address announcer, at one point unveiling a banner with a racial message that was removed by stewards. 

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After the conclusion of the 90 minutes, Everton Luiz showed the Rad supporters the middle finger and pointed to the Partizan badge, sparking a shoving match between players from both teams as the referee tried to restore order.

Eventually, Everton Luiz left the field, wiping away tears as he was hugged by teammates, including goalkeeper Filip Kljajic.

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"I've been suffering racist abuse during the entire 90 minutes and also was upset by the home players, who supported that. They were all attacking me," the midfielder told reporters after the match. "I want to forget this as soon as possible. I love Serbia and the people here, that is why I cried. But please say NO to racism!"

Everton Luiz has played in Serbia since joining from the Swiss league in January 2016. 

Jon Arnold

Jon Arnold Photo

Jon Arnold covered the Mexico national team and Concacaf region in English for Goal until March 2020. His byline also has appeared in the Dallas Morning News, the New York Times Goal blog, FloFC and Pacific Standard. In addition to his written work, he serves as the Concacaf expert on the BBC's World Football Phone-In and has appeared on SiriusXMFC in English and Fox Deportes and Milenio in Spanish. Formerly based in Tijuana and currently living in Texas, Jon covered the 2018 World Cup, the 2015 Copa America, the 2016 Copa America Centenario and the last five Gold Cups.