Felipe Hernandez Placed on Administrative Leave

Major League Soccer announced that Sporting Kansas City midfielder Felipe Hernandez has been placed on administrative leave. This follows a report that the player violated the league’s gambling policies, as well as the terms of his January 2022 reinstatement.

Hernandez was originally suspended in October of 2021 for the remainder of the season due to his violation of the league’s gambling integrity rules and standards of conduct after self-reporting to Sporting Kansas City in July of that year. Hernandez was reinstated on January 25th, 2022 subject to certain ongoing conditions, including Hernandez’s continued abstinence from gambling.

When Hernandez was suspended originally, it was reported that he gambled extensively on sports as a professional soccer player in violation of the league’s rules. This included two bets on MLS matches but Sporting Kansas City was not part of either of those matches. No evidence was found that Hernandez had any confidential or non-public information about those two matches that would have provided him an advantage in betting on the games. There was no evidence that the sporting integrity of any MLS matches was compromised due to Hernandez’s betting.

Hernandez was signed as a Homegrown Player in 2019. He was the first to advance through an Academy Affiliate club to the Sporting KC Academy, then to the Swope Park Rangers (now SKC II) before signing with the senior team.

Sporting KC midfield shorthanded

The primary focus will always be on the player’s health and well-being but this does leave Sporting KC even more shorthanded in the midfield. With Remi Walter and Danny Flores still recovering from injuries, the only healthy midfielders are Erik Thommy, Nemanja Radoj, and Memo Rodriguez. Other options include Alan Pulido, Jake Davis, and Marinos Tzionis but each of those possibilities leaves other parts of the field with limited depth.

Sporting KC faces LA Galaxy on Saturday.