In addition, the referee’s report recorded that, after receiving the red card, the attacker “ran towards the visiting team’s bench to confront his rival and had to be held back by his teammates.”

Brazil’s Sports Court handed the two-game suspension for an incident in Santos’ game against Bahia last weekend. Some members of the commission in fact proposed that Neymar be handed a four-match ban, but the majority ultimately imposed two. The tribunal ruled that Neymar’s actions violated the protocol. The ruling can be challenged by Neymar or Santos. The two-game suspension in essence means that Neymar will actually miss three matches, the first match for an accumulation of yellow cards and the other two for covering his mouth.

While Neymar’s lawyer tried to argue that Neymar had held his hand against his mouth instinctively, the court’s case instructor, Delmiro Campos, noted: “From an objective standpoint, the gesture of covering one’s mouth in a context of confrontation directed at an opponent and the awareness of the illegality are unquestionable.”

Neymar’s defense had argued that “there was no animosity or intense conflict between the players, who were exchanging words in a context of jokes and good humor.”

Neymar will serve his suspension for accumulated yellow cards against Palmeiras in the Brazilian league on Wednesday. He is not expected to be back in action until late November.