Why England's Jude Bellingham was not sent off for covering his mouth when talking to Jordan Ayew in FIFA World Cup 2026 goalless draw against Ghana

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A photograph of England's Jude Bellingham covering his mouth while talking to Ghana’s Jordan Ayew has caused controversy, with some fans questioning why the midfielder was not sent off for the gesture.

England will 'see where we could have been better' - Bellingham, Tuchel react to Ghana draw

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This year's World Cup marked the introduction of a new law stipulating that a player can be sent off should they hide their mouth when speaking to an opponent.

The law was introduced after UEFA brandished Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni with a six-match ban for homophobic conduct towards Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior in February.

Indeed, it has already been actioned, when Paraguay's Miguel Almiron was sent off for the offence against Turkiye.

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So why did Bellingham not see red when covering his mouth while talking to Ayew?

Is covering your mouth illegal?

A player covering their mouth isn’t illegal, but, importantly, doing so in a confrontational manner is.

Thus, Bellingham would have been deemed to have communicated with Ayew in a non-confrontational manner.

"Players can continue to cover their mouth with an arm, and the shirt, because they may chat with friends," FIFA’s head of referees Pierluigi Collina said before the tournament.

Paraguay's Miguel Almiron reacts after receiving a red card

Image credit: Getty Images

"It's normal to chat before, during or after the match. So if the conversation is a friendly conversation, they can continue to do it without any problem.

"When the conversation is confrontational, covering the mouth means that you are doing something very wrong, potentially, and the sanction is the red card."

Almiron covered his mouth when talking to Mert Muldur, while Paraguay and Turkiye players were in the midst of a melee.

The game was in a heated situation, thus, Almiron was deemed to have said something confrontational.

Bellingham and Queiroz’s half-time exchange

At half-time of England’s 0-0 draw with Ghana, Bellingham was involved in a heated exchange with Ghana boss Carlos Queiroz.

The incident took place shortly after Bellingham fouled Jerome Opoku near Ghana’s technical area.

The England midfielder exchanged words with Queiroz before being pulled away by team-mate Morgan Rogers.

"He had a bad reaction with some bad names, that’s why the story started," Queiroz said. ”My intention was to tell him to cool down with that tackle. It could be a second yellow card, a red card, because he went with his foot against my player."

When asked what Bellingham had said, Queiroz replied: "It was nothing special. It’s just that emotional moment, the moment he had one word that is not in the book of life. It could create a little bit of fire.

"But immediately, as professionals, we pulled up. Football is something for brave people - not for people dancing in tuxedos."

Bellingham, meanwhile, played down the incident, adding: "It was just when I made a silly tackle, to be honest.

"I was trying to try to win the ball, and I followed through a little bit and caught the lad. I spoke to him after, and then their bench jumped up trying to get me a yellow card.

"I think their manager, I just recognised him. He's obviously the one who used to be at Manchester United, so great respect, and nothing but a competitive edge for both of us."

On the matter, Tuchel added: ”No one got under our skin. I think it’s normal. It was an exchange of emotions, and Jude stood up for himself and for us as a team. There’s no problem with it.

"We were very calm at half-time. We knew that emotions are part of our game, but we don’t want to get distracted and involved with stuff that doesn’t help us. That was clear, so we were calm at half-time."

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