Federico Higuain has returned to the Columbus Crew 2 sideline after serving a two-game suspension over an alleged postmatch confrontation with a female referee, but the case remains contested because the Professional Soccer Referees Association says the punishment did not match the conduct it described. The union’s account, reported by The Columbus Dispatch, says Higuain squeezed the official’s hand, continued after she told him three times to stop and made a sexist remark.
The incident followed Crew 2’s Aug. 23 match against Huntsville City FC, during which Higuain received a red card. The Columbus Crew later confirmed that he was the coach identified in the referees’ union statement. Higuain missed matches against Chicago Fire II and Philadelphia Union II while serving the sanction, according to The Columbus Dispatch via Yahoo Sports.
MLS NEXT Pro investigated and imposed the two-game suspension, along with a multi-session restorative-practices process. The union argues that U.S. Soccer policy calls for at least three games when forceful physical contact is combined with discriminatory conduct, and it has also pointed to the league’s expectation that coaches meet a higher professional standard than players. Those interpretations are part of the dispute; the available public account does not establish that the policy automatically governed the league’s final sanction.
What is established—and what is not
The allegations remain allegations attributed to the referees’ union, rather than an independently adjudicated finding in the public record. The Crew said it cooperated with MLS NEXT Pro’s review and accepted the additional discipline. A club spokesperson told Axios that the team had no further comment, leaving unresolved how the organization evaluated the alleged contact and remark beyond its acceptance of the league’s decision.
The broader governing principle is not in dispute. U.S. Soccer’s Referee Abuse Prevention Policy says both physical and non-physical abuse toward referees have no place in soccer and encourages participants to report abuse, according to the federation’s official policy. That policy supplies a standard against abuse, but it does not by itself determine the sanction imposed by MLS NEXT Pro in this case.
A limited MLS comparison
A prior MLS coaching case shows that suspensions can extend beyond a single match, although it is not a direct equivalent. In October 2018, Minnesota United goalkeeper coach John Pascarella received a four-game suspension and an undisclosed fine after an incident involving aggressive behavior toward an opponent and entering the field during a confrontation, the Colorado Rapids reported in an official account. The conduct, participants and disciplinary circumstances differed from the alleged referee contact involving Higuain, so the example cannot establish what penalty this case should receive.
That distinction matters: the central question is not whether every confrontation produces the same sanction, but whether MLS NEXT Pro’s response adequately addressed alleged physical contact and discriminatory language directed at a match official. The public information currently identifies the two-game ban and restorative process, while the league’s detailed reasoning and any separate internal Crew review have not been made public.
Higuain, a former Crew player and the club’s all-time regular-season assists leader, remains in the coaching role he began in January 2025. His return has intensified calls from some Crew supporters for his removal, according to Axios, but those demands do not amount to a new club sanction. For now, the unresolved issues are whether the restorative process will be completed, whether MLS NEXT Pro will explain the gap between its punishment and the union’s interpretation of policy, and whether the Crew will take any further action.
