After the Vini Jr. scandal - what will now get a red at the World Cup

After the Vini Jr. scandal - what will now get a red at the World Cup

Following a special meeting in Vancouver, Canada, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) has adopted two new regulations for the upcoming World Cup. At the initiative of FIFA President Gianni Infantino, professional players can in future be sent off with a red card if they cover their mouths during a confrontation with opposing players.

The background to this decision is an incident between Gianluca Prestianni and Vinicius Junior in the Champions League, in which racist insults were allegedly concealed behind a raised shirt. Infantino justified the move by saying that covering the mouth strongly suggests the urgent suspicion of impermissible remarks and that a tough crackdown is necessary for a credible fight against racism. Whether this regulation will also be introduced in other competitions such as the Bundesliga or the Champions League is, for the time being, at the discretion of the respective organizers.

In addition, IFAB responded to the events at the Africa Cup final between Morocco and Senegal with another adjustment, after Senegalese players had temporarily left the pitch together in protest against a penalty decision. The new regulation provides that referees may punish players who leave the field on their own initiative in protest with a red card.

This rule will be applied for the first time at the World Cup in the United States, Mexico and Canada and applies equally to officials who incite their team to such a protest. It was also clarified that a team whose behavior causes a match to be abandoned will, as a rule, be deemed to have lost the game.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.