GENEVA (AP) — Cristiano Ronaldo will likely wait three weeks to find out how long FIFA will suspend him ahead of the 2026 World Cup.
The Portuguese superstar could be suspended for two or three games after being shown a red card for elbowing Ireland defender Dara O’Shea during Thursday’s 2-0 defeat in Dublin.
FIFA took three weeks after the 2026 World Cup qualifying matches to publish the report. Worldwide list of disciplinary verdicts, This includes incidents such as red cards and crowd disorder.
But now FIFA is under less time pressure to deal with the case as there are no World Cup play-off matches until March, although there is keen interest in Ronaldo’s outcome.
FIFA on Friday declined to give any indication of a timeline for the lawsuit.
The one-match suspension is mandatory and will take effect on Sunday when group leaders Portugal host bottom-placed Armenia. A win would see Ronaldo’s team advance to the finals in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
fifa rules
FIFA’s disciplinary rules call for a suspension of “at least two games for serious misconduct” or “at least three games for violent behavior”.
Any additional matches beyond the mandatory sanction would have to be played at the World Cup (if Portugal qualify on Sunday as expected) rather than in a pre-tournament exhibition.
As they waited for the ball to pass around the hour mark at the Aviva Stadium, Ronaldo spun and swung his right elbow into O’Shea’s back, giving Ireland a surprising 2-0 lead.
The referee initially gave him a yellow card, but it was upgraded to a red card a few minutes later after a video review on a fieldside monitor.
“I don’t think it’s an elbow problem. I think it’s a systemic problem,” Portugal coach Roberto Martinez said in Dublin. “Obviously, when he’s trying to run away from a defender, I think that movement looks worse than it actually is.”
“But from the camera’s position, it looks like an elbow,” Martinez said. “We accept it. It could be a red card, but for a valid reason.”
Prohibition in similar cases
FIFA’s disciplinary judge will now have to decide whether Ronaldo is guilty of serious foul play or violent behavior.
The player who was sent off during last month’s World Cup qualifiers was given a two-game and three-match suspension for serious misconduct.
Qatar defender Tarek Salman has been suspended for two games for a serious tackle on a United Arab Emirates opponent. Salman lifted his feet off the ground and drove his boot over the ball into his opponent’s shin.
Burundi international forward Bonfils-Caleb Bimenyimana has been suspended for three games after injuring Kenyan goalkeeper Brian Bouyer. Bimenyimana raised his boot just above the turf and hit Bouyer in the face as he met his low cross at the near post.
First red card for Portugal
Martinez suggested that Ronaldo, in his 23rd season, deserves credit for not having been sent off as an international player.
“He is a captain who has never been sent off in 226 games,” Martinez said, adding that Ronaldo was “grabbed, pulled and pushed” by the Irish defense throughout.
“I think it was a little tough for him because he’s thinking about the team,” the coach said.
FIFA’s ruling could be announced after the World Cup draw on December 5, at which point the schedules for each team’s three group stage opponents will be known.
Ronaldo 1, Messi 2
Ronaldo, who turns 41 in February, is aiming for a record sixth World Cup appearance. His great rival Lionel Messi will also be playing in his sixth World Cup.
Messi was sent off in a friendly match against Hungary in 2005, his debut for Argentina. He received his second red card in the 3rd place match against Chile in the 2019 Copa America.
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