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Kevin Ortega, the controversial referee in the United States-Uruguay Copa America match, reportedly has a history of corruption.
Ortega, 32, refereed his first-ever Copa America match on Monday night in a must-win group game for the USMNT against Uruguay.
Ortega found himself at the center of several controversial calls against the U.S. and quickly lost control of the match.
The questionable refereeing made some fans wonder if the match was somehow compromised. Now it appears those concerns may well be valid, as Ortega has a history of corruption.
Kevin Ortega is the controversial CONMEBOL referee for the #USAvURU game.
In 2022, he awarded a penalty to Boca Juniors. After the game, the Bolivian police searched the ref's booth and seized several Boca Jrs shirts given to the referee team. #USMNT #CopaAmerica pic.twitter.com/csrF4eWLgR
— World Soccer Talk (@worldsoccertalk) July 2, 2024
USMNT-Uruguay Copa America Ref Kevin Ortega Received Gifts From Team In 2022
AS Diario reports that Ortega was at the center of an investigation in 2022 when he awarded a match-winning penalty to Argentinian powerhouse Boca Juniors in the Copa Libertadores, the South American Champions League.
After the match it was revealed that Ortega accepted gifts from the club prior to the start of the contest.
“In 2022, Ortega courted controversy in a Copa Libertadores match between Argentinians Boca Juniors and Bolivians Always Ready. After he awarded Boca a soft winning penalty, Always Ready cried foul when it emerged that their opponents had gifted Ortega club shirts before the game,” AS reported. “Boca, however, insisted that this was a routine gesture. “In every match, we show courtesy and attentiveness by giving the match officials a present,” director Jorge Bermúdez said, per Argentinian media outlet TyC Sports.”
Ortega also served as the fourth official for the USMNT’s 2-1 defeat to Panama on Thursday. Several fans noted that the amount of stoppage time at the end of the contest was far shorter than it should have been. Ortega was in charge of calculating that time.