Football – Despite the defeat: The United States qualifies for the Copa America – Sports

Port of Spain (dpa) – The host United States qualified for the Copa America tournament despite defeat against Trinidad and Tobago. The yellow card received by Serginho Dest within 30 seconds and the red card that followed the sending off caused great anger among other American soccer players.

“It’s completely disrespectful to his teammates on the field, the people on the bench. It’s disrespectful to the game and the referees,” criticized US captain Tim Ream after the match 1:2.

Dest, currently on loan to PSV Eindhoven from Barcelona, ​​first complained about the throw-in decision in the 39th minute and then continued to complain for a long time until he received the second yellow card. Because the United States won the confrontation with Trinidad and Tobago overall after a 3-0 victory in Austin last week, a narrow defeat was enough to reach the semi-finals of the European Nations League and qualify for the Copa America.

The United States will host the continental championship organized by the South American Confederation CONMEBOL next summer, but it did not automatically qualify. Together with Mexico and Canada, the United States will also host the next World Cup in the summer of 2026.

© dpa-infocom, dpa:231121-99-22733/2