France, June 20 -- Referee Ivan Barton dismissed the 32-year-old in first-half stoppage time after the midfielder appeared to direct a comment at Turkey's Mert Muldur.

In April, world football's governing body Fifa, which organises the World Cup, introduced a rule allowing match officials to eject players who hide their mouth when confronting players from other teams.

The sanction came following an incident in which Benfica striker Gianluca Prestianni was accused of racially abusing Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior during a Champions League game in February.

Prestianni denied racial abuse but was later banned for six matches - with three of those suspended - for homophobic conduct.

Fifa chief Gianni Infantino has been a prominent s...