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Edinson Cavani has been charged with misconduct by the Football Association for using the word “negrito” on Instagram in November and the Manchester United forward could face three matches if convicted.
The 33-year-old must respond by January 4, after his swift removal from office and his apologies proved insufficient to avoid a charge.
A statement from the FA read: “Edinson Cavani has been charged with misconduct for breach of FA Rule E3 in connection with a social media post on November 29, 2020. It is alleged that contrary to the Rule E3.1 from the FA, a comment The Manchester United FC player’s Instagram page was insulting and / or abusive and / or inappropriate and / or discredited the game. It is further alleged that the comment constitutes an ‘Aggravated Rape’, which is defined in Rule E3.2 of the FA, as it included a reference, either express or implied, to color and / or race and / or ethnic origin ” .
Although the maximum fee is a six-game suspension, if Cavani pleads guilty, the independent commission that will consider the evidence is likely to decide three games. If the player denies the charge and is found guilty, the ban could be longer, although his removal and apology, plus any other mitigating evidence, means this is unlikely.
United said: “Manchester United and all of our players are fully committed to fighting racism and we will continue to work with the FA, alongside other governing bodies and organizations, and through our own campaigns, in that regard.
“We take note of the FA’s decision today to indict Edinson Cavani for his response on social media to a friend’s congratulatory post after the Southampton match. Edinson and the club made it clear that there was absolutely no malicious intent behind the message, which he deleted and apologized as soon as he was informed that it could have been misinterpreted. The player and the club will now consider the position and respond to the FA accordingly.
The post came after United’s 3-2 win at Southampton, with the visitors 2-0 trailing at half-time. After coming in as a substitute at halftime, Cavani scored twice, including the winner of overtime. He responded to the congratulations of a follower on Instagram by writing “thank you black guy!”
