In the Round of 32 clash, co-hosts Mexico beat Ecuador by 2-0, while the CONMEBOL team ended their tournament journey with Piero Hincapie receiving a poor red card.
The Mexico vs Ecuador match was expected to be a challenging one, especially after Ecuador qualified for the knockout stage after a stunning victory against the four-time champions, Germany. The co-hosts Mexico recorded two goals in the first half, as Julián Quiñones and Raúl Jiménez scored goals in the 22nd and 31st minutes, as El Tri comfortably secured their spot for the Round of 16.
In the late stoppage time of the second half, Ecuador centre-back Piero Hincapie got a red card, and the reason was covering his mouth during a confrontation with the opponents. While he had a talk covering his mouth with the Mexican substitute striker Santiago Giménez, the home forward went to appeal for it. The referee checked the ground monitor before showing the red card to Hincapie.
This is a special rule for the ongoing FIFA World Cup 2026 to maintain on-field discipline, as any player covering his mouth during a confrontation will receive a direct red card, while the conversation quality does not need to be measured. As it is a very common trend among the footballers, it seems that the players are more habitual with this rather than remembering the big consequences for this tournament.
Hincapie became the second player to receive a red card for covering his mouth during the World Cup. During the group stage match Turkey vs Paraguay, Paraguay star Miguel Almirón received the red card due to the same reason. Overall, it was the 11th red card in the FIFA World Cup 2026, and all have been recorded as direct red cards.
How many matches will Piero Hincapie miss for the red card covering his mouth?
Just like the Paraguay star Miguel Almirón, Piero Hincapie will also miss one game for the red card. As Ecuador have already been eliminated from the ongoing World Cup 2026, Hincapie will have to serve this suspension outside the competition.
