Spectators at the friendly match between Mexico and Brazil were warned over 'discriminatory chanting', with the match paused after reports of homophobic language from the stands.
The international friendly was taking place at Kyle Field in the United States, with more than 85,000 fans flocking to Texas for the fixture. However, just before the hour mark, referee Lukasz Szpala stopped the game and initiated the new protocol aimed at stamping out discriminatory language.
Szpala informed the players of the situation and stopped play, with fans seeing a message on the big screen. "Because of the discriminatory chant you just heard, the game has been temporarily stopped. Any individual participating in the discriminatory chant will be ejected from the stadium," it read.
The pause and the warning represents part one of the protocol. On this occasion, those in charge felt no need to move on to step two - players leaving the field - or step three, which would see the game fully abandoned.
The protocol was put in place by FIFA and was in place ahead of the 2018 World Cup, while Concacaf - the governing body for football in North America, Central America and the Caribbean - has put it into force in the past, notably in their 2024 Nations League final.
“CONCACAF condemns the discriminatory chanting in the final minutes of the Nations League Final between Mexico and the United States men’s national teams,” a statement read after the March incident. “Security staff in the stadium identified and ejected a significant number of fans, and the referee and match officials activated the FIFA protocol.”
When Saturday's game was paused, Mexico were trailing 2-0 to Brazil thanks to goals from Premier League stars Andreas Pereira and Gabriel Martinelli. They clawed their way back to 2-0 in the final minute, only for Endrick to deliver a last-gasp winner for the Selecao.
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Mexico's defeat was their second on the bounce after a 4-0 reverse against Uruguay in Denver. They will hope for better fortunes when they kick off their Copa America campaign against Jameica on June 22, with Venezuela and Ecuador their other group stage opponents.
Brazil have one more pre-tournament friendly to come, taking on hosts The United States in Orlando on Wednesday. The Selecao, who reached the final of the last Copa America in 2021, have been drawn in a group containing Costa Rica, Paraguay and Colombia.
The United States will go into their next match hoping to recover from a humbling 5-1 defeat against Colombia on home soil. Bournemouth winger Luis Sinisterra was among the scorers for Colombia, who struck three times in the final 15 minutes of the match.
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