Soccer’s governing body in Cyprus has postponed the weekend’s club matches after a bombing early Friday damaged a car belonging to a referee.
The incident comes at an inauspicious time for the US national team, which moved its March 5 friendly against Ukraine from Kharkiv to Cyprus because of violence in the Eastern European country stemming from political protests.
According to reports, an explosive device was placed on the hood of referee Leontios Trattou's car in a parking lot outside his apartment in a Nicosia suburb. Trattou is the president of Cyprus’ referee association.
The Football Federation of Ukraine listed Trattou as the referee of the US-Ukraine friendly on their website yesterday. The USMNT’s game is set to be played in nearby Larnaca.
No one was injured in the blast, but another vehicle was also damaged.
