Thomas Tuchel's England laboured to a 0-0 draw against Ghana in their second World Cup group game, but the real storm erupted off the pitch — Paraguay have sent an official complaint to FIFA after Jude Bellingham was not sent off for putting his hand over his mouth while talking to an opponent.
Bellingham covered his mouth as he spoke with Ghana forward Jordan Ayew during the stalemate in Boston. Under a new FIFA rule introduced for this tournament, covering the mouth in a confrontational situation with an opponent is a straight red card. Paraguayan midfielder Miguel Almiron became the first player to be dismissed for the offence in his nation's narrow victory over Turkey.
“Paraguay have filed an official complaint to FIFA after Jude Bellingham escaped a red card for covering his mouth.”
The Paraguayan Football Association, according to Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo, has filed an official protest with FIFA, arguing the regulation was not applied consistently and equally across all teams. It is claimed Bellingham remained on the pitch because his act was not deemed confrontational.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino has previously reaffirmed the rule. “This thing about covering the mouth is for us a very, very important rule. It's about respect. It's about the example that we should give. If you have nothing to hide, you don't cover your mouth when you speak to somebody,” he said. FIFA’s statement on Almiron’s red card read: “Following a VAR review in the FIFA World Cup match between Türkiye and Paraguay, Miguel Almiron was shown a red card for covering his mouth. Following a special meeting of The IFAB held in April, a number of amendments were introduced to be implemented at the FIFA World Cup 2026. This included a red card for any player in the tournament seen covering their mouth in a confrontational situation with an opponent.”
Former Premier League referee Keith Hackett told Football Insider that Bellingham was “rather fortunate that neither the referee nor VAR has detected that he was covering his mouth whilst in conversation with an opponent.”
On the pitch, England’s performance against Ghana offered a different kind of frustration. BBC Sport's football tactics writer Umir Irfan explained that Tuchel's system is built to entice pressure, with players like Harry Kane dropping deep to provoke opponents into leaving their half. Against Croatia, it worked spectacularly as Zlatko Dalic's side pressed and were exploited. But Ghana, under Carlos Queiroz, committed to a low block with great intensity, nullifying England's direct runners. “No need to panic for England — but this was a reality check,” the BBC noted.
Tuchel has picked a squad of “14 or 15 starters” suited to this approach — centre-backs comfortable in possession, and attackers like Jude Bellingham, Morgan Rogers, Anthony Gordon, Marcus Rashford, Bukayo Saka and Noni Madueke who can run into space. But against Ghana, the bait was not taken.
As England prepare for their final group game, the unresolved question lingers — will Paraguay's protest force FIFA to act, or will Bellingham escape punishment while the rule's consistency is scrutinised?