Concacaf announced that players from Canada, United States and Mexico who receive a red card during the 2025 Gold Cup will serve a suspension during the team’s next friendly match, as the disciplinary action does not carry over into the 2026 World Cup.
“Following extensive discussions with FIFA, Concacaf is now in a position to confirm that any 2025 Gold Cup pending suspension for Canada, Mexico, and the United States (co-hosts of next year’s World Cup) must be served during their next international friendly match and not during the FIFA World Cup 2026,” a spokesperson from Concacaf said to ESPN.
The question arose when Jacob Shaffelburg received a second yellow in Canada’s 1-1 (5-6) Gold Cup quarterfinal match loss to Guatemala, being ejected from the pitch as the team faced elimination from the tournament. As a host of the upcoming World Cup, the Canadian men’s national team will not compete in the upcoming Concacaf Qualifiers and therefore has no competitive matches until the 2026 tournament.
Given the lack of official tournaments in the schedule, Shaffelburg will be suspended for the team’s upcoming friendly match but will remain available for selection under head coach Jesse Marsch for the Canadian men’s national team 2026 World Cup opener.
The rule applies to all players of the 2026 World Cup host nation, under article 69.3 of FIFA’s disciplinary code.
“If a representative team is hosting a final competition and is consequently not required to participate in qualifying matches to reach the final competition of this tournament and its next official match is in that final competition, any match suspension shall be carried over to the representative team’s next friendly match,” states FIFA.
Any player from Mexico or the United States who earns a red card in the semifinal game or final of the 2025 Gold Cup will be out for the next friendly match scheduled before the World Cup.
The USMNT beat Guatemala 2-1 in the Gold Cup’s first semifinal on Wednesday, while Mexico faces Honduras later for a ticket to the final.
