New York Red Bulls' Kaku Blasts Ball Into A Fan's Face, Gets Sent Off

New York Red Bulls midfielder Kaku was sent off with a red card in the final moments of the Red Bulls’ 2-2 draw with Sporting Kansas City last night, after he kicked a ball in frustration and it struck a fan in the front row. The fan reportedly was left with a bloody face and needing medical attention.

According to Red Bulls midfielder Daniel Royer, Kaku didn’t mean to hit anyone. “[Kaku] definitely meant to hit the board” in front of the first row of seats, Royer said, per ESPN. Kaku, who appeared angry about a botched pass just before he launched the ball into the stands, misfired, hitting the fan and sparking a shoving match on the sideline. At around the 17-second mark in the video above, behind the players’ scrum, you can see a fan slumped over and the people next to him gesturing to the usher for help.

After the game, Kaku tweeted out several apologies.

With the red card, Kaku will automatically miss the team’s next game, but he’ll likely face a longer suspension for endangering a fan. This morning, the Red Bulls put out a statement about the incident:

“The New York Red Bulls organization does not condone the type of behavior displayed near the end of Sunday night’s match in Kansas City. We hold everyone in our organization to a high standard of conduct. The matter will continue to be discussed internally and we will have no further comment at this time.”

The fan, at least, appeared to be ok after the game.