New Disciplinary Rules at World Cup 2026: Red Cards for Mouth-Covering and Pitch Walkouts

Footballers who shield their mouths during confrontations with rivals, or who abandon the field as a form of protest against officiating, now face the prospect of an immediate red card at the upcoming World Cup 2026. The measure forms part of a broader disciplinary overhaul ratified by Ifab in the lead-up to the Fifa Congress convening in Vancouver on Thursday, with the updated framework set to govern the tournament from its June kick-off.

The revised regulations are specific to this competition: Ifab has stopped short of imposing the new standards across all football, leaving individual governing bodies and competition organisers free to determine whether to adopt them in their own events.

The provision targeting pitch walkouts was introduced largely in response to the disorder that overshadowed the 2026 Africa Cup of Nations final. A disputed late penalty call prompted a number of Senegal‘s players to leave the field, creating a prolonged standoff. Brahim Díaz of Morocco ultimately failed to convert the spot-kick following the extended interruption, and Senegal went on to claim the title in extra time.

In its official communication, Ifab outlined the scope of the new measure: “At the discretion of the competition organiser, the referee may sanction with a red card any player who leaves the field of play in protest at a referee’s decision. This new rule will also apply to any team official who incites players to leave the field of play. A team that causes a match to be abandoned will, in principle, forfeit the match.”

Critics from European domestic leagues have raised concerns about the automatic red card provision, pointing to scenarios where a player’s departure from the pitch may subsequently be linked to racial harassment they endured during the match.

The question of mouth-covering has similarly become entangled with issues of racist abuse. A prominent episode earlier this year saw Vinícius Jr of Real Madrid allege that Gianluca Prestianni of Benfica directed racial slurs at him while concealing his mouth beneath his shirt.

Uefa subsequently handed Prestianni a six-match suspension after the player acknowledged making homophobic remarks, a case that drew sharp condemnation from Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who championed a firm response to such conduct.

Infantino has equally pressed for more severe consequences for players who walk off the pitch in protest, particularly in the aftermath of the contentious Afcon decider. The Confederation of African Football (CAF) appeals panel subsequently reversed the outcome of January’s final, declaring Morocco the winners — a verdict that Senegal have since challenged before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.