Just before midnight Central time, Goal.com reported that Kansas City Wizards head coach Peter Vermes was arrested last week. It is bad enough that the head coach of an MLS team has been arrested. What Vermes is charged with makes the matter worse.
Early in the morning on August 24th, Vermes was arrested for DUI. His exact blood-alcohol level was not released. He was jailed, but posted bond and was released. He will be arraigned on November 9th. MLS needs to levy punishment prior to that date.
It may seem unfair to punish someone that has not been fully convicted, but Vermes is no ordinary citizen. As a head coach, he represents the Kansas City Wizards and Major League Soccer at all times, even in his private life. MLS may be on the back-burner of the national media’s conscience, but negative stories like DUIs tend to get noticed, especially after a team gets a big win (KC beat LA Galaxy 2-0 in LA over the weekend). It would do MLS some good to lay down the law swiftly and quickly to show they are a league that does not tolerate such behavior.
Vermes is lucky, but he is also an idiot. Driving under the influence is never acceptable. It is 100% preventable. As cliche as it sounds, he could have killed someone. He knows better. Hopefully he learns from this.
EDIT: It was initially reported that the family was on their way home from a sporting event, and in some reports a Rowdies game. It has since been revealed that they were at a late-night movie. I apologize for any confusion.
This is not the first American soccer related DUI incident this year. Four Orlando area men were killed last month on the way home from a FC Tampa Bay Rowdies match in Tampa.
Adam Soucie is the author of Soccer, Not Football, a blog focused on the American game. If you’ve liked this piece, check out his other work. If you haven’t liked it, he promises there’s better stuff on his site.