Friday, July 10, 2020

Montreal Coach Thierry Henry Kneels for 8:46 During MLS Game

Henry is one of two Black head coaches in MLS


Head coach of the Montreal Impact Thierry Henry in March. (Minas Panagiotakis/Getty)

BY EVAN BLEIER / JULY 10, 2020 10:27 AM
To call attention to the amount of time George Floyd had his neck knelt on while he was being murdered by a former Minnesota police officer, Montreal Impact coach Thierry Henry knelt for eight minutes and 46 seconds after his team kicked off against the New England Revolution on Thursday night.
Clad in a Black Lives Matter shirt, the former France, Arsenal and Barcelona striker knelt with his head down and his hand raised in a closed fist for part of the time while the game went on in front of him before getting to his feet at the 8:46 mark.
“It was just to pay tribute and show support to the cause,” Henry said. “That was basically it and pretty simple.”
A former World Cup winner, Henry has taken action against racism in the past by launching the Stand Up Speak Up campaign along with other soccer players. The 42-year-old has also been a supporter of Show Racism The Red Card.
“We all have stories that we can tell, but for the first time other ethnicities are involved,” Henry told ESPN’s Taylor Twellman on Wednesday. “I always say back in the day, when stuff like that was happening, that I get insulted on the field for the color of my skin … I would like other ethnicities in my team to walk out before I walk out, then that would be pretty powerful.”
Players, coaches and even referees also showed their support for the Black Lives Matter movement a day before Henry’s team took the field prior to the opening match of the MLS is Back Tournament.
Montreal lost Thursday evening’s match with the Revolution 1-0.
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