Antonio Rüdiger Apologizes After Red Card in Copa del Rey Final

Defender Antonio Rüdiger issued an apology after being sent off during Real Madrid‘s 3-2 defeat to Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final at La Cartuja Stadium in Seville.

Referee Ricardo De Burgos Bengoetxea showed Rüdiger a red card in the 120th minute — just moments after Jules Koundé scored Barcelona’s winning goal in extra time. Jude Bellingham and Lucas Vázquez were also sent off at the final whistle.

“There’s no excuse for my behavior last night. I am very sorry. We played very well from the second half onwards. After 111 minutes, I was no longer able to help the team and made a mistake before the final whistle,” Rüdiger wrote on social media.

In his match report, the referee stated that Rüdiger — who had already been substituted — was shown a red card for throwing an object from the technical area. Several coaching staff members had to restrain him due to his aggressive behavior.

Tensions had already been high before the match, with Real Madrid boycotting the pre-match press conference, training session, and official photo shoot — protesting comments made by referee De Burgos and VAR official Pablo González Fuertes in their press conference.