Xavier Arreaga, an Ecuadorian defender for the Seattle Sounders, sparked rebuke over a political cartoon he shared on his Instagram account last week.
Javier Hernández #14 of Los Angeles Galaxy scores a goal as Xavier Arreaga #3 of Seattle Sounders defends during the match at the Dignity Health Sports Park on Aug. 19, 2022 in Carson, California. The match ended in a 3-3 tie.
Arreaga would later delete the post and shared an apology message on his own account but not before he was labeled as homophobic among other things, according to"Dear fans – last night I reported a post of a famous Christian artist in my Instagram stories which at the time seemed normal to me and without thinking that the image was going to cause and hurt the people of our community, which never it was my intention.
Xavier Arreaga #3 of Seattle Sounders looks on before the game against the New York City during the CONCACAF Champions League Semifinals at Lumen Field on April 06, 2022 in Seattle, Washington.Sounders head coach Brian Schmetzer spoke about Arreaga on Wednesday and said he would sit down with Arreaga to tell him what he posted"wasn’t correct."
Juan Otero #7 of Santos Laguna and Xavier Arreaga #3 of Seattle Sounders FC fight for position during the semi-final Leagues Cup between Seattle Sounders FC and Santos Laguna at Lumen Field on Sept. 14, 2021 in Seattle, Washington."From a club standpoint, a lot of people were hurt about that Instagram post and they have a right to be hurt.
"He’ll sit down with them and talk things through and just make sure he understands what he said wasn’t correct."