MLS players postpone all night games in wake of Jacob Blake shooting

MLS players decided to postpone games Wednesday night in solidarity with NBA, WNBA and MLB players.

The Milwaukee Bucks made the bold decision to refuse to play in Game 5 of their series against the Orlando Magic, as they are protesting the shooting of Jacob Blake in Wisconsin earlier this week. This form of protest has already matriculated to soccer, as Major League Soccer players also decided to postpone several games in order to show they stand firmly with those fighting for racial justice.

MLS postponed all games that were scheduled to start at 8:00 p.m. ET or later on Wednesday, including a much-hyped matchup between Atlanta United and Inter Miami. Orlando City’s game against expansion side Nashville was allowed to continue, however, as that game was at halftime when the decision was finalized.

MLS hasn’t been shy about their support of the BLM movement.

The league has embraced the Black Lives Matter movement, and they used their Orlando bubble during the “MLS is Back” tournament as their stage to profess their affection. Players kneeling during the anthem, as well as important statements from individuals players of all backgrounds, were extremely commonplace sights.

With a few MLB teams also deciding to cancel games tonight to show their frustration after Blake was shot seven times by police in Kenosha, his shooting is starting to affect the American sports landscape in a similar way to George Floyd’s death several months ago. By deciding not to play these games, MLS players are showing that racial injustice and police misconduct of any kind will be explicitly condemned by the league and its players.

The Blake shooting isn’t just hitting the Bucks close to home, as games in three major American sports leagues have been postponed due to their frustration with the lack of accountability in the American criminal justice system.