LA Galaxy part with midfielder Katai after wife's racist posts

[June 06, 2020]    NEW YORK (Reuters) - The LA Galaxy has parted company with Serbian midfielder Aleksandar Katai after his wife published "a series of racist and violent social media posts," the Major League Soccer (MLS) team said on Friday.

In Instagram posts that have since been deleted, Tea Katai referred to Black Lives Matter protesters as "disgusting cattle" and urged violence against them according to media reports.

Los Angeles Galaxy midfielder Aleksandar Katai (7) in action against the Houston Dynamo at BBVA Stadium. Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports/File Photo

Black Lives Matter supporters have protested in cities across the U.S. since the death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man killed in police custody late last month, calling for police reform and racial justice.

The LA Galaxy released a brief statement on Friday announcing that midfielder Katai and the team had "mutually agreed to part ways," after "strongly condemning" Tea Katai's posts when they became aware of them on Wednesday.

"The LA Galaxy stand with communities of color, and especially the Black community, in the protests and fight against systemic racism, social inequality, bigotry and violence," the club said.

The 29-year-old Katai, who previously played for the Chicago Fire and signed with LA Galaxy in December, has apologised for his wife's social media postings.

The MLS season has been on hold since March, when the novel coronavirus outbreak froze much of the professional sports calendar, and earlier this week ratified a labour deal allowing play to resume in 2020.

(Reporting by Amy Tennery; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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