This article was originally written by Christopher Corona on October 8, 2026 and translated into English by Diego Tovar on October 8, 2026.<\/p>\n
Daniela Silva attended the September 26th match between Austin FC and San Diego FC wearing a jersey that said \u201cAbolish ICE.\u201d This jersey would cause Silva to get kicked out from the stadium and banned for the next 12 months.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey removed Daniela because they offered her a different shirt\u201d said Natalia Coveney, a UT alum with a Master\u2019s in Sports Management. \u201cThey said her Abolish ICE shirt was\u2028ultimately a form of political speech that technically isn\u2019t allowed in the stadium.\u201d<\/p>\n
In an interview with Natalie Grigson of MySA, Silva mentioned that she was approached by stadium staff to inform her of the rule which eventually led to her expulsion from the stadium.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo [Austin FC], it\u2019s MLS code of conduct, and thus the policy we follow says, no political speech,\u201d said Coveney. In another video she says \u201cThis rule is very common, but that doesn\u2019t mean it\u2019s good.\u201d<\/p>\n
La Murga de Austin, a musical ensemble that supports Austin FC, and Los Verdes, an Austin FC fanclub, both of which were present during the match, collaborated in a social media post in which they highlighted that a Venezuelan member of the Austin community was shot six days earlier by ICE, and as a result of such events, they said the club has the responsibility to defend the Hispanic community: \u201cIn the days since, members of our community have questioned whether they feel safe and welcome returning to the Q2 Stadium. This should matter to Austin FC,\u201d said the publication. \u201cThe club has the responsibility to make it clear that our hispanic and immigrant communities are welcome and safe in the Q2 Stadium.\u201d<\/p>\n
Additionally, Silva told Grigson that she was told by others that the office building in which Austin FC resides was also being leased out by ICE. These rumors would add on to the existing narratives that link Austin FC with ICE.<\/p>\n
Texan En Espa\u00f1ol was not able to confirm these statements, and Austin FC has denied all accusations and we were not able to find evidence that corroborates the opposite. Nevertheless, these rumors still added onto the tension during the match.<\/p>\n
The day before Silva was suspended from the stadium, Coveney posted a video to Sunrise Movement ATX\u2019s social media in which she accused ICE,based off of third-party accounts, of detaining individuals in a lot close to the offices of Austin FC. Texan en Espa\u00f1ol was not able to find any evidence confirming the veracity of these statements nor any evidence of the contrary.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen that post went up, it got a lot of traction very immediately for Austin FC. And so people are paying attention,\u201d said Coveney. \u201cThis happening 24 hours before the match.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd now people are also not watching the full video and jumping to conclusions that somehow Austin FC is facilitating ice activity,\u201d said Coveney. \u201cAnd as much as I do in our context, to properly criticize Austin FC for whatever role they have in this.\u2028That is not objectively true.\u201d<\/p>\n