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Inter Miami forward Luis Suarez will serve a three-match ban in MLS play as punishment for an incident at the conclusion of last month's Leagues Cup final, during which Suarez spat on a member of the Seattle Sounders' staff in the midst of a large kerfuffle between the two teams.

Suarez will miss Miami's match at Charlotte FC on Saturday, as well as home matches against the Sounders on Sept. 16 and D.C. United on Sept. 20.

Miami received no further punishment from MLS, while Sounders staff member Steven Lenhart has had his credentials revoked for the remainder of the 2025 season and playoffs, his access to be reviewed again ahead of the 2026 season. The Sounders were also fined an undisclosed amount for the "misappropriation of credentials."

Suarez's three-match ban comes days after the Leagues Cup slapped Suarez with a six-match ban that will apply solely to play in that competition. His teammates Tomas Aviles and Sergio Busquets received respective bans of three and two matches in the Leagues Cup, while Lenhart picked up a five-match ban.

The forward apologized for his actions in a statement issued on social media on Thursday, four days after Miami lost 3-0 to the Sounders in the Leagues Cup final in Seattle.

"I want to apologize for my behavior when the game ended," he wrote in part. "It was a moment of much tension and frustration, where just after the game ended things happened that shouldn't have happened but that doesn't justify my reaction. I made a mistake and sincerely apologize. It's not the image I want to give in front of my family, that suffers because of my mistakes, in front of my club, that also doesn't deserve seeing themselves affected by something like this."

Inter Miami are currently sixth in MLS' Eastern Conference, though they have three games in hand from their participation in various international competitions this season. Before taking part in the Leagues Cup, they reached the semifinals of the Concacaf Champions Cup and reached the round of 16 in the first edition of the expanded Club World Cup.