7 Fastest Red Cards In Football History (Ranked) | OneFootball

Receiving a red card during a football match is not ideal in itself, but there is a way of going about it which doesn't make it look embarrassing.

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You may think that Steven Gerrard getting sent off against arch-rivals Manchester United after 38 seconds will easily make this list. You're not even close here.

Sometimes these things happen, but there are some moments of madness, in record time, that simply have to be seen to be believed.

Keep scrolling to discover seven of the quickest dismissals in history.

7 Kaio Wilker - 9 seconds

We're not sure that we'd call this a tackle - maybe some kind of MMA or WWE move that went wrong.

During the Copa do Nordeste in 2021 (Brazilian Championship based in the north-east of the country), the on-field clock time had barely reached nine seconds before Botafogo's Kaio Wilker went in two-footed and off the ground into the Treze defender.

We know the term "let him know you're there", which usually involves a heavy challenge, but this is taking that to a whole new level. Because of this, Botafogo went on to lose 1-0 and Wilker was released that same year.

6 Togo Sukuwara - 9 seconds

An unbelievable incident that could have been avoided.

During a J-League 2 match between Tokyo Verdy and Sugan Tosu in 2009, the game was barely 10 seconds old when the pass from the kick-off was misjudged by Tokyo's Togo Sukuwara, and brought down the opposing player who was running through on goal.

It's one of the most blatant examples of a 'denial of a clear goalscoring opportunity', otherwise known as DOGSO in refereeing terms.

The Japanese midfielder was rightly given his marching orders in what was a new record at the time in Japanese professional football - not an accolade he would have been planning to capture during his career.

5 Ze Carlos - 7 seconds

If you thought Wilker's red card was fast, this was even quicker.

Going back to Brazil, the Classico Mineiro took place between Cruzeiro and Atletico Mineiro in 2009, and the striker for Cruzeiro, Ze Carlos, took it upon himself to swing his elbow into the face of Renan Teixeira. The referee blew his whistle after just seven seconds and he was given his marching orders.

Of all the matches that the now-retired Brazilian forward could have done this in, the fixture that means the most to the fans, this decision was made to look even worse. Ze Carlos would later go on to apologise to the supporters after the game.

Many judge this to have been given after 12 seconds as this was when the red card was shown by the referee, but we think his mind was already made up as soon as the elbow was made.

4 David Pratt - 3 seconds

Yes, you read that correctly. A red card after three seconds. How is that possible?

Non-League football in England can be a joyous place at times, for both fans and players, but David Pratt would have been hoping that the ground swallowed him up after being sent off while playing for Chippenham Town after just three seconds.

During a fixture in the seventh tier of English football, Pratt was deemed to have lunged in at Bashley's Chris Knowles and was immediately given his marching orders.

Quoted by The Guardian, Pratt said: "I felt hard done to by the ref's decision but he thinks it was a red card so I have to take it.

"The world record is not a big deal for me, it's not something that I'm proud of," Pratt said. "I'm not the sort of player that would deliberately go in to hurt someone. I play with passion and commitment and I saw the ball and just went for the tackle."

3 Serge Dijehoua - 3 seconds

This is one of the more unfortunate incidents on this list, but the player involved couldn't help but smile as he was being sent off.

Serge Dijehoua, representing Greek Second Division side Gylfadas at the time, looked as astonished as everyone else did when, three seconds after coming off the bench, threw a stray arm into the face of the opposing player.

It looked anything but deliberate, or malicious for that matter. However, the referee disagreed and brandished a red card, much to the disbelief of Dijehoua.

He was so amazed by what had just happened, he almost had his head in his hands while laughing hysterically while walking back to the touchline that he'd just left moments earlier. Bizarre.

2 Lee Todd - 2 seconds

Now this is just getting ridiculous.

Just missing out on the top spot is Lee Todd, a player representing the Sunday League side Cross Farm Park Celtic. We wouldn't normally include amateur football. However, the fact this made national news at the time, meant that this certainly deserves a mention.

During a game against Taunton East Reach Wanderers in 2000, Todd was given his marching orders by referee Peter Kearle after the striker swore at him, complaining about how loud the whistle was which was allegedly blown into his ear.

This took place just seconds before Kearle warned the players about foul language before kick-off.

Todd told SPORTBible: "I thought he was just joking but no. He was adamant. I was off the pitch after two seconds...I just couldn't believe it.

"We were about to kick-off and the referee reminded us about swearing like he normally did, and as he walked past me, he blew the whistle for kick-off but blew it right in my ear.

"I bent down, muttered "f**k me, ref, that was loud!" and the next thing I knew, I had a red card in my face."

1 Keith Gillespie - 0 seconds

Hitting the number one spot on our list is the former Sheffield United man Keith Gillespie for his moment of stupidity.

The Premier League match between the Blades and Reading had already been heated before the ex-Northern Ireland international was subbed on midway through the second half.

But before the play could resume, the red mist descended and Gillespie flung an elbow straight in the face of Stephen Hunt, not once, but twice. As a result, and in full of the linesman, the referee was left with no choice but to send Gillespie for an early bath in one of the most extraordinary incidents we've ever seen on a football pitch.