Red Bulls-Club América Friendly Ends in a Brawl and Finishes Eight-a-Side

A friendly between the New York Red Bulls and Club América ended in a brawl on Saturday night, with punches and kicks thrown in the 85th minute, projectiles thrown from the stands, and the match finishing eight-a-side after three red cards apiece. The Red Bulls won 1-0 on Nehuen Benedetti’s 59th-minute goal, his first for the club, but the goal was an afterthought by the time the referee ended the match early to stop the fighting.

What set the brawl off?

A foul near the end line with five minutes left. The Red Bulls were holding a 1-0 lead at Sports Illustrated Stadium in Harrison, New Jersey, when the foul sparked a clash between both sets of players, USA Today reports. Punches and kicks were thrown during the melee, and fans threw projectiles onto the field as the two teams went at each other. The referee blew the final whistle early, with virtually no stoppage time played, according to a wire report citing Tom Bogert. It was a friendly in name only by the end: a development run-out for one side and a final rehearsal for the other, settled by a fight instead of a finish.

Who was sent off?

Three players per side, which is how the match finished eight-a-side. The Red Bulls’ own match recap states the count plainly, and USA Today, citing Sofascore, names five of the six: Ronald Donkor and Nehuen Benedetti for the Red Bulls, and Emilio Lara, Ramón Juárez and Dagoberto Espinoza for Club América. Club América’s own account confirmed its three red cards in a post during the match. The one loose end is Andy Rojas. Footage showed the Red Bulls midfielder punching Espinoza in the back of the head, and USA Today says it was not immediately clear whether Rojas was red carded. The scorer of the only goal was among those sent off, which tells its own story about how the night went.

Who scored the only goal?

Benedetti, in the 59th minute, and it was his first career goal for New York across all competitions. Rafael Mosquera whipped in a cross from the right, Julian Bazán volleyed it at goal, and Club América goalkeeper Rodolfo Cota saved the first effort before Benedetti put the rebound into the net. The goal deserved a better night. AJ Marcucci kept the clean sheet in his first start since suffering a knee injury on August 13, 2025, his second career clean sheet across all competitions, and the win stretched the Red Bulls’ unbeaten run against Liga MX opposition to six matches, with three wins and three draws. It was also their second straight win over Club América, with a clean sheet in both games.

What did the coaches and players say?

Head coach Michael Bradley played it down. “It was a game and a night that we were really excited for, and so at the end of the game you get some emotion that spills over,” Bradley said after the game, adding that “it’s part of it on certain nights.” His players were in the same register. Mosquera, who set up the goal, called it an excellent game and said the altercations “are things that happen” and “those things stay on the field, and now we just move forward.” Mijahir Jimenez put it the same way: “Everything stays on the pitch. It’s emotions of football.” Nobody from either club has condemned the incident in the coverage checked, and the Red Bulls’ recap treats it as part of the game rather than a stain on it.

Why did a friendly boil over?

Because the two sides were playing for different things, and neither had much to lose. The Red Bulls finished their MLS season last weekend without reaching the playoffs, so this was a chance to move younger players along, in Bradley’s words, with a slightly different group on the field. América fielded a rotated side, with seven players away: four with Mexico in Kingston on the same night, Oscar Perea with Colombia, Brian Rodríguez injured and Raphael Veiga rehabbing in Brazil. Cota captained the side and Miguel Borja led the line, and the night was a final rehearsal before the regular-season finale at Tigres on November 21, when first place is on the line. A friendly with one team winding down and the other tuning up still produced a brawl, which is the part nobody at either club will want to explain. Red cards for off-the-ball incidents have already made news this season, as when Athenea del Castillo was sent off for pulling a USWNT player’s hair, and Vinícius was sent off for a hair pull of his own at Villarreal, while an MLS sending-off earlier this month saw a player dismissed eight minutes after coming on.

What happens next?

For América, the Tigres game decides first place. They finish top only with a win and Cruz Azul failing to beat Chivas de Guadalajara, or on goal difference if Chivas and Cruz Azul draw and América win. The four players with Mexico return, and the rotated side that brawled in Harrison gives way to the full team. For the Red Bulls, the season is over, and the friendly was the last game of the year. The only open question is discipline: a wire report citing Tom Bogert says disciplinary reviews from the competition organisers could follow for the players involved, and nothing has been announced yet in the coverage checked. The MLS season is done for the Red Bulls, the Hall of Fame class was announced this week, and the last image of their year is a fight in a friendly that was supposed to mean nothing.