On the evening of June 19, in the United States at the San Francisco Bay Area Stadium, the World Cup Group D match between Paraguay and Turkey took place. In a historic moment, the referee brandished the first-ever “mouth-covering red card” in World Cup history, leading to the direct expulsion of a Paraguayan football star.
During stoppage time in the first half, players from both teams engaged in a heated argument on the sidelines. Paraguayan star Miguel Almirón, although not the central figure in the conflict, was seen covering his mouth with his hand while speaking to Turkish defender Mert Müldür. Müldür immediately signaled to the assistant referee and mimicked the same action to protest to the referee.
Referee Iván Barton personally went to the sidelines to review the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) replay and subsequently showed Almirón the red card.
The introduction of the “mouth-covering red card” is a new rule in this World Cup, stemming from an incident in February during a UEFA Champions League match. Real Madrid forward Vinícius Júnior accused Benfica player Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him. Prestianni, however, covered his mouth tightly with his jersey, leading to a deadlock in the investigation by the European Football Association.
In the absence of conclusive evidence, Prestianni was ultimately suspended by UEFA. In order to prevent unnecessary controversies, the World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico implemented a new rule that clearly states players who cover their mouth with their hand, arm, or jersey in confrontational situations and are deemed to engage in unfriendly communication can be directly sent off by the referee.
In today’s match, with Paraguay playing with 10 men against Turkey’s 11, Turkey was unable to score a goal in the second half. Ultimately, Paraguay secured a victory with a lightning-quick goal just 64 seconds into the game.