South African midfielder Themba Zwane (Mamelodi Sundowns), who was sent off in the opening game of the 2026 North and Central America World Cup, is expected to miss the final group match against Korea as he has been suspended for three games.
FIFA announced on the 18th (Korean time) that South Africa's Zwane, who was sent off after receiving a red card in the Mexico-South Africa match, was suspended for three games for violating Article 14, Paragraph 1, e) of the FIFA Disciplinary Regulations. This provision provides for a suspension of at least two games for serious foul play.
The possibility of an appeal is open, but if the disciplinary action is confirmed, Zwane will not be able to play in the second match of Group A against the Czech Republic held in Atlanta, USA on the 19th, as well as the third match against Korea held at Monterrey Stadium in Mexico on the 25th.
Zwane was substituted in the second half of the first match of Group A, the first match of the North and Central America World Cup held at the Mexico City Stadium on the 12th, and received a red card for an unreasonable foul, including hitting opponent Roberto Alvarado in the face in the last minute.
At that time, South Africa was outnumbered as midfielder Spepello Sithole had already been sent off early in the second half, and even Zwane committed suicide by leaving the ground, resulting in a complete defeat of 0-2.
Zwane, a 36-year-old attacking midfielder who plays for Mamelodi, which has won the most titles (15) in South Africa's top league, has been playing for the South African senior national team since 2014, making over 50 appearances.
Hugo Bros, head coach of the South African national team, said in a press conference after the match against Mexico, "I have nothing special to say about the first red card, but in the case of the second red card, the Mexican player blocked our player, but the referee made a different decision."
Coach Bros again expressed his dissatisfaction at the pre-game press conference against the Czech Republic held at Atlanta Stadium immediately after the three-game suspension was announced.
Coach Bros said, "The sending off was too harsh. I looked at the situation again and I don't think a red card should have been issued."
He continued, "Looking at what happened to Lionel Messi (of Argentina) yesterday, I couldn't agree more. We didn't even go to video review (VAR) for Messi, but we looked at VAR for our situation."
It appears that Messi was referring to a situation in which he stepped on the calf of an opponent's defense in a match against Algeria the day before he scored a hat trick, but was passed over without taking any special action.
At the same time, coach Bros repeatedly claimed that the Mexican player stopped Zwane first and directly responded, "It is excessive to receive a red card and a three-game suspension."
