D.C. United places 2 players on leave after altercation, racial slur allegation:

D.C. United announced on Friday night the suspension of forwards Taxi Fountas and Nigel Robertha for what it called “possible violations of league policy.” The club said it “promptly reported the matter to the League Office, at which point MLS began to gather all available information.”

The statement did not specify why Robertha or Fountas had been suspended, but multiple sources present for or briefed on the incident told The Athletic on Friday that Fountas was accused of using a racial slur at Robertha during a recent training session. Robertha, those same sources said, physically assaulted Fountas after hearing the slur.

D.C. United declined additional comment on the allegations Friday.

Fountas was previously accused of using a racial slur in a match last season. Major League Soccer investigated the incident, calling Inter Miami’s allegations that Fountas directed a slur at one of their players “credible” but declining to discipline the player after they were unable to conclusively prove that he’d done so.

Earlier Friday, D.C. United announced the dismissal of its athletic trainer after the club was made aware that he used “a discriminatory hand gesture made by the individual that surfaced in a photograph published across social media platforms on July 20, 2023.”

(Photo: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports)