A football match in Brazil ended with a world-record 51 red cards after a mass brawl that lasted nearly 40 minutes. The Minas Gerais Under-20 Championship clash between Uberlandia and Mamore saw 43 players and eight staff members dismissed, with 48 of those red cards issued during the match-ending confrontation.
Fiery incidents before the brawl
The contest was heated even before the violence erupted. Uberlandia player Luike was sent off after receiving a second yellow card for hitting an opponent in the stomach, while Mamore's Joao Henrique earned a second yellow card for abusing the official. Netinho, from Uberlandia, was then shown a straight red card after striking the Mamore goalkeeper in the abdomen.
Tensions exploded in second-half injury time when Mamore scored to seal a 3-1 triumph. During their celebrations, goalscorer Davi Fernandes Bittencourt made provocative gestures towards the Uberlandia bench and reportedly said: "This is Mamore, go f*** yourself! Suck it! Go f*** yourself!"
Chaos on the pitch
The ensuing chaos saw fists fly as stretchers and chairs were dragged into the brawl. Mamore eventually had 29 individuals dismissed and Uberlandia 22, shattering the previous Guinness Book of Records tally of 36 red cards, set in a match between Atletico Claypole and Victorian Arenas in the fifth tier of Argentine football.
Referee Fernando Patrick lodged a police complaint after the fixture, and military police were needed to step in. Patrick's grievance stemmed from an incident that took place before the fracas, as he alleged that Willer Francisco Silva, manager of Uberlandia, intimidated him.
Allegations against officials
The official's statement noted that the pitch was stormed eight minutes into the second half, with insults and threats being shouted. Willer, together with youth football manager Andre Luiz Nascimento and youth coordinator Junior Caetano, charged onto the turf. It is alleged they said: "You're not leaving here today. You think you can get out of town? We're going to get you, you came here to screw us over!"
Willer allegedly added: "I'm going to punch you. You're not leaving here. I want to see if you'll leave with an escort. Come at me, I'll get you outside, it'll just be you and me, you son of a b***h, I want to kill you, you piece of s***." Fabio Mineiro is understood to have told Patrick: "You will never referee again. I will do everything I can to ensure you don't work anymore. I can stop, but you will stop too."
The match official also observed that Uberlandia's football director, Bernardo Lage, stated that Mamore's changing room had been vandalised. The referee's report indicated that six ball boys reportedly participated in the aggression, throwing punches, kicks, and objects at players and members of the Mamore coaching staff. Local military police were forced to attend to assess the vandalism inside the stadium after the air had cooled.
