Antonio Rudiger has been handed a six-match ban for throwing an object towards the referee, but Real Madrid teammate Jude Bellingham has had his red card overturned on appeal.
Real Madrid suffered a chaotic 3-2 defeat to their rivals Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final on Saturday night, a match that saw three of their players sent off.
The match ended with dramatic scenes after a contentious decision where Kylian Mbappe was judged to have fouled Eric Garcia during Real Madrid`s final attack of the game.
Tempers flared immediately, with the Real Madrid bench, located behind manager Carlo Ancelotti, reacting furiously and protesting the decision vehemently.
Rudiger, who had already been substituted off, was visibly the most upset. He was seen throwing an ice pack in the direction of referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea.
Reports indicate the former Chelsea central defender had to be restrained by others to prevent him from directly confronting the match official.
During the post-match chaos, Vinicius Junior, Lucas Vazquez, and several members of the coaching staff also stormed onto the pitch to angrily confront the referee. Rudiger and Vazquez received red cards during the match itself, while Bellingham was shown a red card after the final whistle had blown.
The referee`s official match report stated that the English midfielder “approached the referee aggressively” and required “to be restrained by team-mates.”
As a consequence of their actions, Rudiger has been issued a six-game suspension, and Vazquez has received a two-game ban.
However, Bellingham`s dismissal was successfully appealed by Real Madrid and has been overturned, meaning he will not serve a suspension.
Real Madrid reportedly submitted video evidence that proved Bellingham was not “aggressive” in his interaction with the referee, leading to the rescission of his red card.
Concerns about the referee, Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea, had been raised by Real Madrid even before the final. The club used its internal TV channel to highlight past mistakes made by the official and questioned his experience level for such a high-profile final.
This pre-match criticism reportedly led to the referee becoming emotional and breaking down in tears during a press conference, where he addressed the personal toll of the scrutiny.
He was quoted saying, “When a child of yours goes to school and there are kids telling him that his father is a `thief` and comes home crying, it`s totally messed up.”
He added, “What I do is try to educate my son, to say that his father is honest, above all honest, who can make mistakes, like any sportsperson.”
De Burgos Bengoetxea also commented on the wider issue, stating, “It`s not right what we are going through, many colleagues, and not just in professional football, but also at grassroots level.”
He concluded by urging everyone involved in the sport to “reflect about where we want to go, about what we want from sport and from football.”
