A Brazil Under-20 football match descended into chaos after a mass brawl prompted the referee to hand out red cards to 51 people, surpassing the previous record for the most players dismissed in a single game.
The extraordinary scenes unfolded during the Minas Gerais Under-20 Championship semi-final between Uberlândia and Mamoré on Sunday, November 1. What began as a football match ended in a 40-minute fight, with ball boys reportedly joining the action.
The referee’s report listed 43 players and eight members of the coaching staff among those dismissed, making the 51 red cards in Brazil one of football’s most remarkable disciplinary incidents. 
How the 51 red cards in Brazil match incident started
The match took place at the Parque do Sabiá stadium in Uberlândia, where Mamoré secured a 3-1 victory over the home side in the first leg of their semi-final tie.
According to Brazilian sports outlet ge, the trouble began in the 54th minute of the second half, shortly after Mamoré scored its third goal. During the celebrations, Mamoré player Davi Fernandes Bittencourt reportedly made provocative gestures towards the Uberlândia bench and directed insults at the opposing team.
Things went south immediately. Uberlândia’s goalkeeping coach, Paulo Sérgio Dias dos Santos, reportedly ran onto the pitch and pushed a Mamoré player, triggering a wider confrontation involving players and members of both technical teams.
The match official, Fernando Patrick Drosghic Modesto, said the violence prevented him from showing the red cards during the incident. He ended the match and recorded the dismissals in his official report.
And apparently, the players were not the only ones who wanted a piece of the action. The referee reported that six ball boys joined the fighting, throwing punches, kicks and objects at players and members of Mamoré’s coaching staff.
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Videos from the incident showed people exchanging blows, while stretchers and chairs reportedly became part of the disorder. The confrontation lasted close to 40 minutes, turning what should have been a football match into something resembling a wrestling event with very poor officiating from everyone involved.
The confrontation reportedly disrupted the match for about 40 minutes. Police later attended the stadium after reports of damage to its facilities.
Brazil’s 51 red cards surpass 2011 Guinness record
The 51 red cards in Brazil surpassed the previous benchmark listed by Guinness World Records, which recognises 36 players sent off during a match between Argentine clubs Atlético Claypole and Victoriano Arenas on February 27, 2011.
That encounter took place in Argentina’s fifth-tier Primera D competition. Referee Damián Rubino dismissed all 18 players from each team, including substitutes, after a mass brawl.
Guinness describes the incident as a “Generalized Brawl” that followed a series of confrontations and heavy tackles during the game. The record stood as the highest reported number of players sent off in a single football match.
The Brazilian incident exceeded that figure by 15 dismissals when the 43 players and eight coaching staff members are counted together.
However, Guinness’s published record entry still lists the 2011 Argentine match. While the number recorded in Brazil surpasses that benchmark, the organisation has not yet updated its public record entry to confirm a new official record.
Other football matches that descended into mass brawls
Mass confrontations have produced some of football’s most infamous disciplinary episodes.
The 2011 Claypole versus Victoriano Arenas match remains a notable example, with every player from both teams dismissed after the referee lost control of the encounter.
More recently, football has witnessed other violent clashes involving players, officials and coaching staff. Such incidents often attract disciplinary investigations, with governing bodies able to impose suspensions, fines and other sanctions depending on the evidence.
The Uberlândia-Mamoré clash could also have consequences beyond the record-breaking number of dismissals. Brazilian sports outlet O Tempo reported that the incidents could face review by the relevant sporting disciplinary authorities, with possible sanctions for individuals and clubs.
For now, Mamoré can celebrate its 3-1 victory, but the result has been completely overshadowed by an extraordinary display of indiscipline. As for the referee, he certainly had a busy afternoon — and probably one of the most exhausting red-card counting exercises in football history.
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