Football fans were left stunned on Saturday during a Portuguese league match after the Centre referee pulled out a “white card”.
The white card was shown to the medical staff that had rushed onto the pitch to aid a player who was feeling unwell.
The card is designed to show recognition to clubs for acts of fair play during a match Follow Sports Brief on Twitter for more trending and breaking news!
A Portuguese match pitting Sporting Lisbon and Benfica was marked with a bizarre incident after the referee pulled out a white card.
For the longest time in the history of football, fans have only been accustomed to match officials showing only two cards to punish players – yellow and red.
1 Referee Catarina Campos brandishes a white card during a Portuguese women’s cup match between Sporting Lisbon and Benfica.
However, according to Sportbible, referees now have a third option – in the shape of a white card.
The publication reports that fans were treated to a rare scene on Saturday, January 21, when a ref brandished a white card for the very first time in the history of professional football when Benfica and Sporting Lisbon women faced off.
When was the white card shown? It is understood that the card was shown when Benfica were 3-0 up after the medical personnel from both sides raced onto the pitch to aid one of the players.
At the time, the player in question had complained of feeling unwell in the early exchanges of the time.
Her condition prompted the medical team from both sets of teams to make their way onto the pitch to assist her.
According to The Mirror, the white card is designed to show recognition to clubs for acts of fair play during a match. The move is aimed at ‘improving ethical value in the sport’.
