The intensity of the World Cup has the potential to lead to all kinds of offensive actions -- from players, fans or even broadcasters.
As South Korea wrapped up a stunning 2-0 upset over defending champion Germany, the hosts on Telemundo's morning show, Un Nuevo Dia, were celebrating the result -- since it helped Mexico advance to the knockout round.
Unfortunately, "Chef James" Tahhan was caught making a racist slant-eye gesture as the cast danced and laughed on the set. It did not go unnoticed on social media.
Mexico's soccer federation was fined for "discriminatory and offensive" anti-gay chants its fans made toward Germany's goalkeeper in their World Cup opener. After players urged fans not to repeat the chant, there weren't any other incidents in Mexico's two remaining group stage matches.
Earlier in the World Cup, soccer legend Diego Maradona of Argentina made the same racist gesture toward a group of Asian fans at the Argentina vs. Iceland game. That, along with other behavioral issues, led to calls for him to leave the World Cup completely.
Baseball fans may also remember Cuban slugger Yuli Gurriel of the Houston Astros was suspended for the first five games of the 2018 regular season for making a similar slant-eye gesture after hitting a home run off Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish of the Los Angeles Dodgers in last year's World Series.
