MLS CBA’s violent conduct rules make Luis Suárez’s spitting in Seattle subject to multi-match MLS suspension—potentially a serious ban beyond the Leagues Cup.
MLS’s Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) spells out strict consequences when a player spat at someone during a match—not just for red-card offenses but for post-game misconduct as well. In the recent 2025 Leagues Cup final in Seattle, Luis Suárez was seen spitting at a Seattle Sounders staff member, an act the CBA explicitly permits the disciplinary committee to punish beyond the tournament.
According to the CBA, spitting at anyone—player, coach, official, or staff—is classified as violent or unsportsmanlike conduct. That allows the disciplinary committee to impose extra-match suspensions. In similar past cases, MLS imposed multi-game bans even when the red card came only in a different competition. For instance, Real Salt Lake’s Cristian Arango once received a four-game suspension that counted toward MLS regular-season, the All-Star Game, and Leagues Cup games—all triggered by one violation.
In 2024 and early 2025, MLS suspended players across competitions: Héctor Herrera was banned for spitting at a referee (three matches total), and Jasper Löffelsend received a two-match suspension for spitting on an opponent. Previous disciplinary action shows that violence or spitting can easily exceed just a one-game MLS sanction—even when the incident occurred in another competition.
With Suárez’s history—including fines earlier this year for grabbing opponents’ necks, biting incidents, and on-field confrontations—the league has both precedent and justification to hand down a lengthy suspension. His contract runs through December 2025, and MLS’s ruling could keep him sidelined during crucial matches.
Given how the CBA treats violent or spitting conduct, that could mean Suárez misses several MLS matches in addition to any Leagues Cup penalty. While the disciplinary committee for Leagues Cup will certainly act, that’s unlikely to be the end of it—and MLS could enforce further suspension based on the CBA.