How Many Red Cards Has Lionel Messi Received?

Lionel Messi is one of the greatest ever football players. He’s an elite dribbler, has an unbelievable scoring record and is loved by millions across the world. We associate a lot of positive things with Messi, but what’s his disciplinary record like on a football pitch?

Messi has now played 1000 games for club and country during his incredible career. We’re all well aware that he can find the back of the net and assist his teammates, but how many red cards has he received?

Read on to find out the number of Lionel Messi red cards, when they took place during his career, and the reasons why he hasn’t received many bookings compared to other football players.

How Many Red Cards Has Lionel Messi Received?

As of November 2022, Lionel Messi has received 3 red cards in 1000 football matches. This means that Messi receives a red card in only 0.3% of matches. Two of his red cards were for his country, Argentina, and the other one for Barcelona.

How Many Yellow Cards Has Lionel Messi Received?

As of November 2022, Lionel Messi has received 94 yellow cards in 1000 games for club and country. This means that Messi receives a yellow card in only 9.2% of the matches that he plays.

Lionel Messi’s First Red Card

Lionel Messi’s first red card was during his international debut for Argentina. He was only 18 years old at the time. Argentina were playing Hungary in a friendly match on August 15th 2005 when Messi was subbed on to the field in the 63rd minute.

Having only been on the pitch for 2 minutes, Messi threw an elbow at Hungarian defender Vilmos Vanczák after he pulled his shirt. From there, he was shown a red card and made his way into the Argentina dressing room.

It was later reported that Messi was found crying in the Argentina changing room because of what had happened.

Lionel Messi’s Second Red Card

The second Messi red card was again in an Argentina shirt. This took place 14 years on from Messi’s first red card, and it was during Argentina’s Copa América match against Chile. Messi got himself into a tussle with Chile’s Gary Medel in the 32nd minute of the match.

While chasing down the ball in the Chilean penalty box, Medel chested Messi, causing a physical and verbal altercation which resulted in both players being sent off. Messi is not known for being a violent football player, so this altercation was certainly out of character for the Argentine.

Watch this Lionel Messi red card unfold in the following video:

Lionel Messi’s Third Red Card

The third and final Messi red card came on a big stage. Barcelona were playing Athletic Bilbao in the final of the Supercopa de España (Spanish Super Cup) in 2021. This was during a tricky time for Barcelona, as manager Ronald Koeman was struggling to guide them to success.

During extra time, Barcelona found themselves 3-2 behind to Bilbao. Messi picked up the ball in midfield, driving forward before playing a pass out wide to full back Jordi Alba. Bilbao striker Asier Villalibre bumped into Messi twice before he played the pass, which resulted in Messi striking out his arm.

The decision went to VAR before the referee reached for his pocket and showed Messi his first red card for Barcelona.

It was the only red card he received for Barcelona, an astonishing record to have achieved after playing 778 games for the club. Watch his one and only Barcelona red card here:

How Many Red Cards Has Lionel Messi Had for Barcelona?

Lionel Messi has had 1 red card for Barcelona during 778 games for them.

How Many Red Cards Has Lionel Messi Had for Argentina?

Lionel Messi has had 2 red cards for Argentina during 169 games for them.

Why Has Lionel Messi Received Red Cards?

Everybody is at risk of receiving a red card on a football pitch, but why has Lionel Messi received red cards during his career? Although he has only received three red cards, there is a theme to why he has received them.

Being the player he is, opposition defenders and midfielders will target Messi in an attempt to try and keep him quiet during a match. Often Messi is too good for these players and their efforts will be quashed over 90 minutes.

In the three instances where Messi has received red cards, you can argue that he has been provoked by opposition players on all three occasions. Messi will have been provoked many times during his career due to him being one of the best players ever, so it’s surprising that he hasn’t received more red cards because of this.

The reason for his first red card would also come down to immaturity. At 18 years old, Messi was young, and everyone makes mistakes early on in their careers. Learning this mistake at such a young age has probably helped Messi craft his professionalism during the rest of his career.

Reasons Why Messi Doesn’t Receive Many Red Cards

Professionalism

Lionel Messi is a true professional. There are other elite players who have had significantly more red cards than Messi. For example, Cristiano Ronaldo has received 11 red cards in his career, 7 of them being straight reds.

It’s always appeared on the face of things that Messi hasn’t carried much of an ego in his career. He does his best to stay out of any controversy, which is hard for a football player with a status like his.

This sensible attitude allows Messi to concentrate on his game. Instead of receiving negative headlines, Messi steals the limelight by creating numerous goals and assists during his career.

Playing Style

Messi’s attacking playing style means that he is never tasked with marking any opposition players. He plays in his own lane, taking up great positions between the lines. The first priority of any opposition who plays a team that includes Lionel Messi is to try and man-mark him.

Tackling and marking isn’t high on his priority list during matches, meaning he is required to make fewer tackles. This has helped him receive less yellow and red cards during his career, compared to other midfielders or forwards.