JAKARTA - Paraguay national team striker Miguel Almiron became the first "victim" of a new regulation imposed by FIFA in the 2026 World Cup, namely the Prestianni Rule.
Almiron was given a red card by El Salvador referee Ivan Arcides Barton Cisneros in the continuation of the 2026 World Cup Group D match against Turkey at the Levi's Stadium, Santa Clara, California, USA, Saturday WIB.
The incident occurred in the third minute of extra time in the first half, following a ball scramble that resulted in a foul.
Almiron was then caught covering his mouth with his hand while arguing with Turkish defender Mert Muldur. Muldurawalnya protested to the linesman for Almiron's gesture, until VAR intervened and gave the referee advice.
After receiving input from the VAR, Ivan Cisneros immediately gave a red card directly to Almiron, applying the Prestianni Rule which was just implemented by FIFA in the 2026 World Cup.
The Prestianini rule was born out of an incident involving Benfica defender Gianluca Prestianni with Real Madrid striker Vinicius Junior in the Champions League knockout playoff in February 2026.
Vinicius reported that he was the victim of a racial attack by Prestianni when the two players had an argument. But Prestianni denied it.
Because Prestianni covered his mouth when arguing with Vinicius, there was no independent party who could investigate exactly what the Argentine footballer said.
Prestianni later admitted that what he said was a homophobic taunt, but he denied making a racial remark.
In the end, Prestianni was given a six-match ban, and FIFA responded seriously to such actions by formulating new regulations on the field that there should be no gestures covering the mouth when arguing.
The proposed punishment is a direct red card, and the regulation was approved by the International Football Association Board (IFAB) to be implemented for the first time at the 2026 World Cup.
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