Liverpool-Bournemouth match paused after Semenyo subjected to racist abuse

The opening match of the Premier League between Liverpool and Bournemouth briefly stopped on Friday after Bournemouth forward Antoine Semenyo reported being racially abused by a spectator inside Anfield.

In the 28th minute with the score at 0-0, referee Anthony Taylor talked to Semenyo, who is Black, while Liverpool was preparing to take a corner.

Taylor then ran over to the sideline and spoke to both coaches, Liverpool's Arne Slot and Bournemouth's Andoni Iraola. After also talking to the captains, play resumed about two minutes later.

Semenyo's complaint was the reason for the stoppage, the Premier League confirmed to the Associated Press.

Bournemouth players consoled Semenyo, who played the full game and scored both of his team’s goals in a 4-2 loss.

Iraola said the person who abused Semenyo was identified.

“It's a shame because a really great game of football, the first game of the season with everyone watching, and we have to be talking about this thing still today,” Iraola said.

“We should be past this stage but there’s still people who don't behave correctly. It's a shame because every step you collectively do forward, these things lose a lot of power.”

Bournemouth captain Adam Smith said he was “in shock” and full of admiration for Semenyo, a 25-year-old Ghana international.

“I don't know how Ant’s played on, to be honest, and come up with those goals,” Smith said. “It's totally unacceptable and I just feel sorry for Ant. He’s a little bit down, obviously.”

Smith said he asked Taylor to remove the person who abused Semenyo from the stadium immediately.

“But he said we have to go through a process, and that the police will go and sort it,” Smith said. “And to be fair, the Liverpool players were supportive toward Antoine and the rest of the team. I think it was handled in the right way.”

An anti-discrimination message was read out to the crowd inside Anfield after the halftime whistle.

The Premier League said it will investigate the incident and “offer our full support to the player and both clubs.”

“Racism has no place in our game, or anywhere in society,” the competition said.

“We will continue to work with stakeholders and authorities to ensure our stadiums are an inclusive and welcoming environment for all.”

The Football Association said it was “very concerned about the allegation of discrimination from an area of the crowd."

“Incidents of this nature have no place in our game,” the FA added, “and we will work closely with the match officials, the clubs and the relevant authorities to establish the facts and ensure the appropriate action is taken.”

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Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo, centre left, celebrates with Bournemouth's Adam Smith after scoring his side's opening goal during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ian Hodgson)

Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo celebrates scoring their side's second goal of the game during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield in Liverpool, England, Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)

Bournemouth's Antoine Semenyo, left, and Liverpool's Milos Kerkez in action during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield, Liverpool, England, Friday Aug. 15, 2025. (Peter Byrne/PA via AP)

Liverpool's manager Arne Slot, centre, talks to the referee during the English Premier League soccer match between Liverpool and Bournemouth at Anfield stadium in Liverpool, England, Friday, Aug. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Ian Hodgson)

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Aaron Rodgers passed for 224 yards and two touchdowns, and the Pittsburgh Steelers beat the Miami Dolphins 28-15 on Monday night to stay stop the AFC North.

Pittsburgh (8-6) won its second straight game — and 23rd straight at home during the NFL's Monday night showcase — by overwhelming Miami (6-8) over the final 35 minutes.

Connor Heyward finished off a long drive to end the first half by nudging across the goal line on a tush push to give the Steelers the lead. Rodgers added third-quarter touchdown throws of 19 yards to Marquez Valdes-Scantling and 28 yards to DK Metcalf — who shoved former Pittsburgh safety Minkah Fitzpatrick out of the way en route to the end zone.

Rodgers connected on 23 of 27 passes at frigid Acrisure Stadium. The 42-year-old looked right at home with the lights on and temperatures in the teens during a night that felt like a callback to his prime in Green Bay.

While those days are long gone, Rodgers is playing meaningful football in December, which is all he really wanted when he decided in June to return for a 21st season. The NFL's second-oldest player (thanks to Philip Rivers' unlikely return for Indianapolis) had plenty of help from running back Kenneth Gainwell, who finished with 126 total yards.

Miami saw its slim playoff hopes vanish in the chill as its four-game winning streak was snapped. The Dolphins prepped by practicing in the snow at nearby Robert Morris University on Sunday, but it didn't help.

While Miami took a 3-0 lead during a sluggish first half on Riley Patterson's career-long 54-yard field goal, Tua Tagovailoa and the Dolphins' offense had no answer once Rodgers heated up.

Tagovailoa completed 22 of 28 passes for 254 yards with two garbage-time touchdowns to Darren Waller and his NFL-leading 15th interception. Da'Von Achane, who had powered Miami's recovering from a 1-6 start, ran for 60 yards and caught six passes for 68 more but was a nonfactor during the middle portion of the game, when the Steelers scored touchdowns on four straight possessions to remain unbeaten at home on Monday nights since 1992.

Pittsburgh won for the second time in 13 tries without outside linebacker T.J. Watt during the perennial All-Pro's nine-year career. Watt is out indefinitely after having surgery to repair a collapsed lung sustained during a dry-needling treatment last week.

For a night anyway, Watt's absence didn't matter. The Steelers sacked Tagovailoa four times, and Asante Samuel Jr. picked him off to end a promising first-quarter Miami drive.

Tagovailoa remained winless in games where the temperature at kickoff was under 40 degrees. Miami had minus-20 yards of total offense in the third quarter.

The Dolphins' improved play of late solidified — temporarily, anyway — coach Mike McDaniel's status. With the playoffs now out of reach, Miami will turn its attention to the future, one that might not include the bespectacled 42-year-old whose idiosyncratic approach may be wearing thin.

Dolphins: RB Ollie Gordon II left in the second quarter with a left ankle injury.

Steelers: LG Isaac Seumalo exited in the third quarter with a triceps injury and did not return. ... Pittsburgh rookie DT Derrick Harmon missed his third straight game with a knee injury.

Dolphins: Host Cincinnati on Sunday.

Steelers: At Detroit on Sunday.

AP NFL: https://apnews.com/hub/nfl

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell runs the ball in the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Justin Berl)

Pittsburgh Steelers running back Kenneth Gainwell (14) gains yards after a catch as Miami Dolphins' Jack Jones (23) defends in the first half of an NFL football game in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Justin Berl)

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa (1) carries the ball as Pittsburgh Steelers linebacker Patrick Queen, rear, moves in to make the stop in the first half of an NFL football game in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Steelers tight end Connor Heyward (83) celebrates his touchdown run in the first half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

Pittsburgh Steelers' Marquez Valdes-Scantling (11), Aaron Rodgers (8) and Troy Fautanu (76) celebrate after Marquez Valdes-Scantling caught a touchdown pass in the second half of an NFL football game against the Miami Dolphins in Pittsburgh, Monday, Dec. 15, 2025. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)