Obscene gestures, expulsion, fighting - then the police storm the lawn

There are incredible scenes to be seen from a Nations League game in Central America. The decisive game between Guatemala and Suriname for victory in Group B only escalated during and then after the game. There is a professional who has been promoted to the Bundesliga twice.

Immanuel Pherai (25) was promoted to the top German league in 2025 with HSV and in 2026 as a loan player with SV Elversberg. He is currently playing for HSV in the U23. The Amsterdam native plays for Suriname as a national player. The game in Guatemala was his 15th international match. This ended in complete chaos. In the end, a special riot police unit stormed the pitch to stop a wild brawl.

First trigger: Suriname's Richonell Margaret was sent off with a red card after a confrontation with home spectators (63'). Margaret had previously been racially insulted in the stands, whereupon the actor lost his temper. Referee Joe Dickerson then showed FIFA's official X signal against racism with his arms crossed. The encounter had to be interrupted for around ten minutes.

Insults from all sides

Suriname's team, led by captain Myenty Abena, discussed whether to abandon the game but decided to continue the game. Pherai was substituted in the 94th minute - two minutes later the winning goal was scored for hosts Guatemala, who moved into the quarter-finals.

This is the second serious incident of this kind in Suriname within a very short period of time. Last year, the national team was the target of racist attacks at a World Cup qualifier in El Salvador. General Manager Brian Tevreden: "I'm seriously considering no longer traveling with my team to places where something like this is allowed. Concacaf and FIFA have to take action now."