Santos star Neymar da Silva faces the biggest punishment of his career, as the Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) is considering a lengthy ban for insults he directed at the referee during his team’s match against Remo.
Referee Savio Pereira Sampaio showed Neymar a yellow card in the final minutes, which greatly angered the 24-year-old, as the booking will prevent him from playing in the upcoming match against Flamengo.
After the match, Neymar admitted to insulting Sampaio, saying, “He’s unfair. I was fouled from behind and he didn’t call anything. I just went to protest.”
He added, “I told him, ‘Are you crazy?’ But he completely ignored me. I think he woke up in a bad mood today and came to the match in that state.”
According to Brazilian media, the CBF is considering a suspension of up to 12 matches for Neymar, especially since this is not the first time he has verbally abused referees.
The Brazilian Football Confederation (CBF) had previously suspended Red Bull Bragantino defender Gustavo Marques for 12 matches due to comments deemed discriminatory against female referees.
In fact, if the CBF imposes this fine on Neymar, it will completely extinguish any remaining hope he has of participating in the 2026 World Cup with his national team.
Coach Carlo Ancelotti has made it clear that Neymar must play consistently and perform well, otherwise he will not be included in the Brazilian squad for the World Cup, regardless of the surrounding pressure.
