Brazilian soccer player Neymar was clearly upset after being sent off during a club match on Sunday due to a mistake by the referee.
This incident happened in the 65th minute of Santos’ 3-0 defeat to Coritiba.
Neymar was on the sidelines getting treatment when the fourth referee mistakenly held up his number 10, indicating he was being substituted for Robinho Junior.
It seemed the team actually meant to replace Gonzalo Escobar, but instead, Neymar received a yellow card while trying to get back onto the field.
In a moment of frustration, he snatched the substitute card from the referee and held it up, visibly demonstrating the error.
Footage showed Neymar gesturing angrily towards the referee various times.
He then handed the captain’s armband to Escobar and exited the field.
After the match, Santos addressed the situation on social media, stating that the fourth referee had indeed made a substitution error. “This was confirmed by TV reports and the official notes used during the game,” the club noted, describing it as an inexplicable mistake that went uncorrected.
This odd event unfolded just a day before Brazil’s announcement of its squad for the 2026 World Cup.
Neymar hasn’t played for the national team since 2023 due to injury, yet he’s still Brazil’s all-time leading scorer with 79 goals.
Though he was included in Brazil’s provisional 55-man roster last week, that list will soon be trimmed down to the final 26 for the tournament.
Brazil is set to begin the World Cup on June 13 against Morocco at MetLife Stadium, with additional group stage matches against Haiti in Philadelphia and Scotland in Miami.
The team will also be utilizing Red Bull New York’s new training facility in Morris Township, New Jersey as their base camp.
