Marcelo Bielsa Slams US & CONMEBOL in Epic Copa America Press Conference

Marcelo Bielsa has torn into the US and CONMEBOL in brutal fashion during one of the wildest press conferences in football history. The manager has always been known as a man who isn’t afraid to speak his mind. He’s never held back when it came to sharing his opinion and that doesn’t seem to be changing anytime soon.

The former Leeds United boss is currently in charge of Uruguay and recently took part in the 2024 edition of the Copa America. His side reached the semi-finals, and were one of the favourites to win it all before they were eliminated by Colombia via a 1-0 defeat. Scenes afterwards sparked controversy, though, when crowd trouble led to some of his players getting into a brawl with Colombia fans.

That, alongside issues with the pitches that Uruguay played on seriously ticked Bielsa off, and he’s now let that be known with a savage press conference following his team’s Copa America exit.

Bielsa Called the US and CONMEBOL a Plague of Liars

He accused them of lying about the state of the pitches and training grounds

One of Bielsa’s biggest gripes following his team’s Copa America campaign was the state of the pitches they were playing on and the training grounds they would prepare on. Not only that, but he was also incensed that the US, who were hosting the tournament, and CONMEBOL lied about the situation and promised they were all in great condition.

“They always point to the referees and say that the pitches are in perfect condition. And all the lies that they have told! They did press conferences to say that the pitches were perfect, and you could see the grass poorly united.

“They said that the training fields were perfect, and Bolivia was not able to have training sessions. And I have all the photos that prove the lie. They are a plague of liars! Americans, don’t tell us that the pitch is in perfect condition. They admit that the grass was planted three days before the games. The joints of the grass panels do not close. In yesterday’s game, you will see that in the box, the ball jumps a few times and the training grounds are a disaster. Bolivia had to suspend its training sessions.”

He also accused CONMEBOL of impacting how referees were officiating the games, highlighting their comments after a Brazil match earlier in the tournament. Speaking in the press conference, he said: “Then the CONMEBOL accusing the referees of not calling a penalty to Brazil and you know perfectly well how it influences later.”

Bielsa Also Slammed Security for the Mass Brawl After Colombia Loss

He defended his players for their actions

While his side were eliminated by Colombia, it was what unfolded afterwards that will be remembered most going forward. Ugly scenes in the crowd sparked fury from the Uruguay players, who rushed to protect their families sitting in the stands. This led to them engaging in a wild brawl with some Colombia supporters and Darwin Nunez was seen throwing a chair at some fans at one point. Bielsa, though, has defended his players and their actions, instead criticising those in charge at the arena for allowing things to escalate to that stage.

“The players were forced to act that way. The sanction should not be for the players, but for those who did not prevent this from happening. This is a witch hunt, they are going to sanction us. All of this is a shame. It’s a shame.”

Bielsa Also Criticised Some Journalists

He accused them of being afraid to hold certain powers accountable

Bielsa then turned his attention to a certain portion of journalists and aimed a portion of his rant at them too. While he wasn’t talking about them all, he highlighted a section of the media who wouldn’t speak out against the issues that he’d raised, and accused them of being afraid to criticise organisations as to not lose any money.

“You know perfectly well that there is a percentage of journalism that never criticises certain sectors of power that are responsible because it is not convenient for them economically. What happens is that you don’t want to admit it because of corporatism.

“There are journalists who respond to the interests of those who administer power and distribute the money. You know that. And you keep your mouths depending on which power you want to protect or harm.”

The manager was clearly very unhappy with how Copa America 2024 had been run, and with the United States set to host the World Cup in a couple of years, hopefully these are just growing pains and there won’t be a repeat of these issues when that tournament rolls around in 2026.