There was anger when the players of FC Dallas and Nashville SC collectively took a knee during the national anthem before their Major League Soccer match on Wednesday in Frisco, Texas.
Dallas defender Reggie Cannon said he was disgusted by the anger at Toyota Stadium when players and officials knelt to call attention to racial injustice. He said teammate Ryan Hollingshead then turned to him and said he was sorry.
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“You can’t even have the support of your own fans in your own stadium,” Cannon said. “It baffling me.
“As a team, we strive to provide the best possible product on the field, and these last six months have been absolute hell for us. Absolute hell.”
Dallas and Nashville had not played a game since the season was halted on March 12 due to the coronavirus. While other teams played in the MLS ‘Back Tournament in Florida last month, Dallas and Nashville were forced to withdraw before the start due to positive COVID-19 tests among players from both teams.
The teams hit as MLS kicked off the regular season in local markets. Some games will include fans if local jurisdictions allow it. Just over 5,000 were allowed to attend the game at Toyota Stadium, although the crowd that turned up appeared smaller.
Nashville won the game 1-0. The two teams meet again Sunday.
The death of George Floyd prompted a number of MLS players to form the group Black Players for Change, which seeks to eliminate systemic racism in football and society.
At the opening game of the MLS tournament in Florida, members of the group stood collectively in silence, fists up, for more than eight minutes. Players and coaches wore Black Lives Matter T-shirts throughout the event.
Eight minutes, 46 seconds is the length of time prosecutors say Floyd, a 46-year-old Black man, was nodded under the knee of a white Minneapolis police officer before he died. (The length of time was later revised to 7 minutes, 46 seconds.)
The national anthem was not played for games at the tournament. Cannon said the players asked that it not be played for the match because they did not feel it was good “for the national anthem that was being played at the moment.”
“We had one from the United States, but they don’t understand what kneeling means,” Cannon said. “They do not understand why we are kneeling.
“They can not see the reason. They think we are the ignorant. It’s incredibly frustrating. I’m sorry I have this tone, but you have to call it what it is.”
Cannon said he expected to see some negative pushback on the unanimous response.
“It hurts me because I love our fans, I love this club, and I want to see the support the league has given us, that everyone has given us, from our fans,” he said.
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