List of FIFA World Cup red cards
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

This is a list of all occasions where a football player was sent off from a
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
match due to a foul or misconduct, either as a direct expulsion (red card) or as a second caution (yellow card) within the match. This list includes all dismissals since the first World Cup in 1930. The use of physical red and yellow cards to respectively indicate dismissals and cautions is a later invention, having been introduced at the 1970 tournament. Only players are listed, even if they were at the substitutes' bench at the time of the sending off.
Managers Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities o ...
and other technical staff members are not covered.


Statistics

*
Plácido Galindo Plácido Reynaldo Galindo Pando''(9 March 1906 – 22 October 1988) was a Peruvian football midfielder who played for Peru in the 1930 FIFA World Cup, where he also became the first ever player sent off in a World Cup match. He also was a play ...
was the first player to be sent off in a World Cup match, playing for Peru against Romania in a 1930 match officiated by Alberto Warnken. Although physical red cards were introduced from 1970, they were not put in practice until the 1974 World Cup, when referee
Doğan Babacan Doğan Babacan (30 November 1929 – 18 May 2018) was a Turkish Referee (association football), football referee. He was the first Turkish referee to supervise a match in FIFA World Cup history. Babacan was born in Istanbul. He played football f ...
sent off Chile's Carlos Caszely during a match against West Germany. * Two players have received red cards twice: Cameroon's
Rigobert Song Rigobert Song Bahanag (born 1 July 1976) is a Cameroonian former professional footballer who is the manager of the Cameroon national team. Known for his defensive skills, Song usually played as a centre-back but could also operate at right-back ...
(1994 and 1998) and France's
Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached Spanish club Real Madrid and is one of the mos ...
(1998 and 2006). * Five dismissals have taken place during final matches: Argentina's Pedro Monzón and Gustavo Dezotti (both 1990), France's
Marcel Desailly Marcel Desailly (born Odenke Abbey; 7 September 1968) is a French former professional footballer, widely considered to be among the greatest centre-backs and defensive midfielders to ever play football. During a successful career at club level, l ...
(1998) and
Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached Spanish club Real Madrid and is one of the mos ...
(2006), and
John Heitinga John Gijsbert Alan "Johnny" Heitinga (born 15 November 1983) is a Dutch football coach and a former player who played as a centre back. He manages Jong Ajax, the reserves team of AFC Ajax. A product of the Ajax Youth Academy, he played for their ...
of the Netherlands (2010). * Uruguay's José Batista received the quickest red card, in the first minute in a game against Scotland in 1986. * A few expulsions either took place after the final whistle of the match or were awarded to players at the substitutes' bench (or both), and thus did not reduce the number of players on the pitch during the game. Two of them, that of Leandro Cufré of Argentina (vs Germany, 2006) and that of
Denzel Dumfries Denzel Justus Morris Dumfries (born 18 April 1996) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Inter Milan and the Netherlands national team. Dumfries began his senior career in 2014 at Sparta Rotterdam, helping them ...
of the Netherlands (vs Argentina, 2022), took place after the penalty shoot-outs of knockout matches, making them the latest red cards. * Three goalkeepers have been sent off in the tournament: Italy's
Gianluca Pagliuca Gianluca Pagliuca (; born 18 December 1966) is an Italian football coach and former professional goalkeeper. He is regarded by pundits as one of the greatest goalkeepers of his generation, and one of Italy's best keepers ever. Throughout his c ...
(1994), South Africa's Itumeleng Khune (2010), and Wales's Wayne Hennessey (2022). * The match with the most dismissals was Portugal vs Netherlands of 2006, when referee Valentin Ivanov dished out 4 red cards, 2 for each team. * The referee who has sent off the most players is Arturo Brizio Carter, 7 red cards, in 5 different matches (also a record). * The team that has the greatest number of expulsed players is Brazil, with 11 – in 9 different matches, a record shared with Argentina. The team whose opponents have received the most red cards is Germany (incl. West Germany), with 20 – in 18 different matches, also a record. * The
2006 World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
had the largest number of red cards: a total of 28 players were sent off (in 20 matches, also a record).


Notable incidents

* Of more than two dozen matches that had multiple player expulsions, a few are remembered for their exceptional violence and brutality: the " Battle of Bordeaux" (Brazil vs Czechoslovakia, 1938), the " Battle of Berne" (Hungary vs Brazil, 1954), the " Battle of Santiago" (Chile vs Italy, 1962), and the " Battle of Nuremberg" (Portugal vs Netherlands, 2006). * During a 2010 quarter-final against Ghana, with the score tied at 1–1 going into stoppage time of the second period of extra time, Uruguayan striker
Luis Suárez Luis Alberto Suárez Díaz (; born 24 January 1987) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Uruguayan Primera División club Nacional and the Uruguay national team. Nicknamed ''El Pistolero'' ('The Gunman'), he is ...
was red carded after famously denying a goal-bound header with his hand. Ghana missed the resulting penalty and went on to lose the subsequent penalty shoot-out; with a victory they would have become the first ever African team to reach the final four of the competition. * During the 2006 final, French captain
Zinedine Zidane Zinedine Yazid Zidane (; born 23 June 1972), popularly known as Zizou, is a French professional football manager and former player who played as an attacking midfielder. He most recently coached Spanish club Real Madrid and is one of the mos ...
was sent off after he famously headbutted Italy's
Marco Materazzi Marco Materazzi (; born 19 August 1973) is an Italian former professional footballer and manager. Early in his career, Materazzi played with various Italian teams in Serie B and Serie C, and with Everton in the Premier League. He spent two p ...
in the chest, after a verbal provocation by Materazzi. This was the final act of Zidane's professional career, as he remained committed to his pre-tournament decision to retire after the tournament. France lost the final on penalties. * During a 2006 match between Croatia and Australia, referee
Graham Poll Graham Poll (born 29 July 1963) is an English former football referee in the Premier League. With 26 years of experience, he was one of the most prominent referees in English football, often taking charge of the highest-profile games. His final ...
failed to send off Croatian player
Josip Šimunić Josip "Joe" Šimunić (; born 18 February 1978) is a Croatian retired footballer and current manager of the Croatia national under-19 team. Born in Australia to Bosnian Croat parents, Šimunić started his career at Melbourne Knights then mov ...
after the second yellow card, and only did so when he issued a third one, right after the final whistle minutes later. FIFA's report on the match initially listed all three bookings, but later the second one was removed; it is not known if the booking was retroactively overturned, or if this was done for report consistency purposes only.


Full list

;Notes


See also

* List of UEFA European Championship red cards * List of FIFA Confederations Cup red cards {{FIFA World Cup
Red card A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction. Red card may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers * Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or d ...
FIFA World Cup records and statistics World Cup red cards