News Americas, BROOKLYN, NY, Fri. April 3, 2015: Team Guyana USA Soccer League has announced its complete withdrawal from Caribbean Cup Inc., (CCI) as well as from its tournaments, structure and activities.
This action is in protest of what the group claims is “overt discrimination against, and abuse of, Guyanese players and management.” Team Guyana in a statement Friday said it “will no longer participate in CCI’s annual soccer tournaments at the Thomas Jefferson High School Field at Flatlands Avenue and Essex Street, Brooklyn.”
“Consequently, we call on all Guyanese soccer players and fans to, henceforth, boycott all Caribbean Cup tournaments and games, until another transparent, fair and professional tournament is established, which the League can sanction,” the group added.
CCI sponsors soccer tournaments for Caribbean-American teams in the New York City metropolitan area. Each Caribbean nation fields a team, which pays significant participation fees to CCI. Successful teams and players are promised various prize monies.
However, CCI has “obdurately reneged on prize monies earned and has been biased and abusive to Guyanese players and management,” Team Guyana claims.
“The anti-Guyanese posture and rhetoric are palpable in CCI. Prejudice, basis on nationality, contravenes US law and FIFA regulations. It is abhorrent and must be rejected by all,” the statement continued,
Team Guyana USA Soccer League added that it “believes that CCI operatives exploit players for their self-aggrandizement; to the financial detriment of the players.”
They claimed that despite genuine efforts by United States Congressman, Hakeem Jeffries, and New York State Senator, John Sampson, to have the organization address its alleged anti-Guyanese bias and mediate its ongoing disputes with “Team Guyana,” CCI has remained intransigent.
Team Guyana believes and alleges that CCI has:
(I) Changed rules during or after games to avoid paying prize monies.
(II) Used CCI funds to defray expenses of board members while neglecting players.
(III) Changed game time without notice and penalized players for being late.
(IV) Canceled games without notice and refused to refund patrons.
(V) Sublets City facilities at exorbitant costs to teams and players.
(VI) Discriminated against and abused Guyanese players.
(VII) Refused to include certain Guyanese players in the all star games.
(VIII) Reneged on awarding prize monies to Guyanese players.
(IX) Instituted lifetime bans and fines against Team Guyana without due process for seeking mediation.
(X) Refused to furnish teams and players with its constitution upon request.
In August 2014, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries summoned both sides to a meeting and laid out several proposals for an amicable resolution. However, CCI officials rejected his proposals and contemptuously walked out of the mediation.
CCI subsequently, without due process, banned the President and Vice President of Team Guyana for life, explicitly because the League sought mediation from our government representatives.
The League says it intends to expertly represent and protect their players from abuse and exploitation, and will not tolerate CCI’s shenanigans.
In light of its withdrawal, the League calls on all Guyanese soccer players and fans to unreservedly boycott all Caribbean Cup soccer tournaments, games, meetings and other activities.
