FIFA bans Colombia midfielder Cardona 5 games for gesture

In this Friday, Nov. 10, 2017, photo, Colombia's Edwin Cardona, right, makes derogatory gesture during a friendly soccer match against South Korea at Suwon World Cup Stadium in Suwon, south of Seoul. (Ahn Young-joon/AP)

ZURICH — FIFA has banned Colombia midfielder Edwin Cardona for five matches for making a discriminatory gesture with his eyes toward a South Korean opponent.

FIFA will allow Cardona to serve the ban in friendly games, so he should be available for Colombia’s World Cup opener against Japan on June 19.

Cardona has also been fined 20,000 Swiss francs ($20,150) because of the incident last month in a friendly in Seoul.

Cardona apologized at the time, saying he "didn’t mean to disrespect anyone, a country or a race, but if anyone felt offended, or interpreted it in that way, I am sorry."

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