A reporter who went viral for proudly claiming that she didn’t know where Bosnia and Herzegovina was on a map has since apologized.
Abigail Velez, a reporter and fill-in anchor for ABC 7 in Los Angeles, made the comments ahead of the upcoming Round of 32 matchup between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the U.S. men’s national team. A clip of the segment went viral, with critics pointing to Velez seemingly being proud of her ignorance.
As a result, Velez walked back her words in a statement posted to social media on Saturday.
“In a poor effort to have a little fun with World Cup competition, I took it too far and made a thoughtless comment on air that was insensitive and inappropriate. I apologize to the people of Bosnia and the Bosnian Football team,” Velez said in the statement. “The World Cup is supposed to be about uniting communities around the world, and my comment didn’t reflect that spirit.”
Velez’s comments had come as part of a spot from Long Beach in the wake of the USMNT’s loss to Türkiye on Thursday. The U.S. won the group in spite of the loss, setting up the matchup with Bosnia and Herzegovina in Santa Clara.
Abigail Velez, a reporter and fill-in anchor for ABC 7 in Los Angeles, made the comments ahead of the upcoming Round of 32 matchup between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the U.S. men’s national team. A clip of the segment went viral, with critics pointing to Velez seemingly being proud of her ignorance.
As a result, Velez walked back her words in a statement posted to social media on Saturday.
“In a poor effort to have a little fun with World Cup competition, I took it too far and made a thoughtless comment on air that was insensitive and inappropriate. I apologize to the people of Bosnia and the Bosnian Football team,” Velez said in the statement. “The World Cup is supposed to be about uniting communities around the world, and my comment didn’t reflect that spirit.”
Velez’s comments had come as part of a spot from Long Beach in the wake of the USMNT’s loss to Türkiye on Thursday. The U.S. won the group in spite of the loss, setting up the matchup with Bosnia and Herzegovina in Santa Clara.
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